The Redhead He Wants To be With
by YoshiDinoxD
Summary: Izumi returns to Konoha after 12 years from the Hidden Sand. She meets her old friends, including Kakashi. Izumi tries not to get along with him because of what happened a few years back. Kakashi is happy to see her again after her long absence KakaxOC
1. Chapter 1

**Hey! It's izumchan90 here! Well…for those of you who read my story "I meet Kakashi Hatake". You may have noticed that I deleted it. Well that's because I thought of another story with my OC Izumi. Yeah, I know you said that my story went great, but no worries. I promise I'll make this story GREATER. Anyway, here is my new story. I always hated to put the disclaimer up since I have to say it every chapter, but I'll just say it.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. The characters except for my OCs all belong to the creator. If I did own Naruto, my OC characters would've existed in the story.**

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**Chapter 1 **

Under the desert heat, Team Gai and Team Kakashi walked towards the direction of their home, Konoha. They had finished their A-rank mission. The Kazekage of Suna had recently been kidnapped by Akatsuki, the most dangerous organization joined by S-rank Criminals. Gaara, the Kazekage, returned from his death thanks to the retired shinobi Granny Chiyo. The day of his return was blissful and depressing at the same time to the Suna villagers.

Now that everything is turning out great, the Konoha shinobis will now focus more on Akatsuki's whereabouts. However, to Gai, it wasn't really great to him. Holding his rival, Kakashi's, arm around his neck, Gai was certain that the grey-haired jonin was holding him back. Kakashi, know as the Copy Ninja because of his Sharingan, had developed the Mangekyou Sharingan. Since Kakashi wasn't an Uchiha, the Sharingan had reduced most of his stamina and was unable to walk by himself.

Tenten, one of Gai's members of his team, turned to the older jounins who were way far back away from them. "Hey, you guys are so slow!" she yelled as she waved. Gai glowered, _How dare she calls me slow…_Next to him, Kakashi can see Gai's lack of helpfulness. "Now, now, Gai, I overused my new Sharingan, so I didn't mean to hold you back."

Gai growled, earning a glare from the Sharingan user. The next thing Kakashi knew, Gai yelled, "I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!" With that, he threw Kakashi up in the air.

"Wha—? H-hey!!" the grey haired man screamed. The five teenagers (Naruto, Sakura, Tenten, Lee, and Neji) turned to see what has happened. They found Gai carrying his own backpack on the front….with Kakashi _on his back_?! _That's…just gross_, Naruto thought in disgust.

_Grown men playing piggyback…they're more gross than I thought_, Sakura said to herself, disgusted as Naruto. Lee, Gai's favorite student, didn't think it was gross at all. "I see! That's a training exercise, right Gai-sensei?" Gai just smiled, his teeth sparkled.

"This way I'll be much faster!" he declared. Gai sprinted in great speed, passing the teenagers, "You think you can catch up to me now?!" He left with the smoke covering his trail, leaving the rest coughing. _It's even more disgusting when they move_, Naruto shook his head trying the get the image out of his head. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw lee carrying his own backpack, holding his arms back. " Neji," he called to his teammate. Neji and Tenten glared at him. Neji knew this was coming, "Hell no!" he hissed.

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"So this is my new home, Konoha. It sure is…lively here," a woman said as she placed her hands on her hips, looking at the surroundings of the village. The woman appeared to have a dark red hair that reached about two inches past her shoulders. Her bangs covered her left eye, and the rest of it stayed on the right side of her face. She had green eyes that showed a maximum effect to her smile.

"Um…excuse me, miss?" the woman's thoughts were interrupted. She turned to the spot where the gate watchers gawking at her in suspicion and admiration at the same time. Sighing, she walked towards them and stopped. "I'm sorry, but I'm not an intruder. I just moved here from Suna, so…"

"Oh, well we just want to make sure that you write your name down on this clipboard," one of gate watchers, Kotetsu, handed her a clipboard with an empty sheet of paper. "Oh yeah sure, I can do that," she wrote down her name and dropped the pencil on the desk when she was finished.

"Thanks," the other man, Izumo, said.

The woman scratched the back of her neck then asked, "Uh, I may sound stupid when I say this. That huge building over there _is_ the Hokage's building, right?" she pointed towards the red building that had the symbol of fire on it.

"Y-yes, you got it right," Kotetsu nodded.

The redhead giggled, "Thanks. See you." She waved before she walked away. After minutes of silence, Izumo said, "She's so…"

"Don't say it." His partner gawked at him. Kotetsu stared at the clipboard. "The clipboard says that her name is Izumi Takahashi."

"What?"

"I said her name is Izumi Takahashi."

"To tell you the truth, I think I've heard of that name before, and her name almost sound like mine," Izumo yawned.

"Hey, what's that over there?" Kotetsu glanced through the fog outside the village. There was a figure…is it running? Yes, it was dashing towards Konoha. It was actually Gai, the most energetic jonin in the village. He was carrying Kakashi who unconscious at Gai's craziness. Gai sprinted harder until he made his feet as a brake. He bowed down as Kakashi leaned forward. Then Gai hit Kakashi's chin really hard and yelled, "FIRST PLACE!!" Kotetsu and Izumo gawked at him in displeasure. Lee was next. He carried everyone's backpacks and he yelled, "SECOND PLACE!!!!"

Izumo stared at them asked Kotetsu, "Why are they racing?"

Kotetsu shrugged, "How am I supposed to know?"

Gai turned to his student and said, "Lee, you need to work harder!!"

Lee straightened up and replied, "Yes, I understand, Gai-sensei!!"

"But there's another bad news…" Gai muttered.

"W-what do you mean, Gai-sensei?" Lee asked him, puzzled.

Gai grinned, spun around dramatically as he said, "You didn't get second place, you got…" As if on cue, Kakashi's arms pointed towards Lee and Gai yelled, "THIRD PLACE!!!!"

"W-WHA—?!"

"Kakashi's in second place since I carried him. HAHA!! No need to thank me Kakashi!" In response, the grey haired jonin groaned painfully. Lee scribbled on his memo as he cried, "I have a feeling that you gave me useful advice, Gai-sensei!!!" Behind them, Naruto, Sakura, Neji, and Tenten frowned at the annoying sceme. "How juvenile," Neji simply stated.

Tenten giggled, "But we did run along!!"

"Hn."

"Yosh, we are to report to the Hokage now!!!" Gai commanded.

"Um, Gai-sensei? What about Kakashi?" Sakura asked.

Gai almost forgot about the knocked out jonin that was riding on his back. "Well, change in plans! To the hospital!!" he pumped his fists in the air and motioned for everyone to go.

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"Come in!" the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade said as Shizune gave her a cup of tea. The door opened, and Izumi entered the room.

"Good morning, Hokage-sama!!!" she spoke as she gave the blonde and her assistant a friendly wave. Tsunade studied her face carefully as if she had met her before. "I'm going to need your name if you don't want me calling you 'lady'."

The visitor giggled, "My name is Izumi Takahashi. I just moved here in Konoha from Suna today."

"Are you the one that the Kazekage had announced that will be staying here for a while??"

"That's right."

"The Kazekage _did_ send me a copy of your detailed profile. What's your rank, Izumi?"

"I'm a jonin!"

"Remind me to check your profile so I wouldn't have to ask you. Listen, I have papers to do, which is a pain in the ass. Here's the address of your apartment, which is already reserved just for you. You can focus on expenses tomorrow," Tsunade smiled at her as Izumi grabbed the papers from the Hokage's desk.

"Well, that's find and all…Thanks, Hokage-sama."

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"Oi, Kakashi-sensei, you're awake!" Naruto said. Then Tsunade entered the room that was filled with Team Gai and Team Kakashi. "Sorry I'm late. Someone just moved in to Konoha, which you really don't care at all. Anyway, well done, everyone. You've completed the mission successfully." Kakashi stood up, but was unable to with his dead tired body.

"Don't force yourself, Hatake. This time your problems are getting serious."

He sighed, "I know."

"Well, that's about it. Everyone, let Kakashi rest for the day." At that, everyone left the room, leaving Kakashi alone. _So I'm here again, huh?_ He thought with another sigh. Then there was a knock on the door. Frowning to himself, Kakashi wondered who it was outside. "Come in," he said in a low voice. The door opened, revealing a redheaded woman. She's definitely not a nurse since she wasn't in her nurse uniform. It would be strange when a stranger just visits you at a random time.

"Uh…Hatake Kakashi, am I right?" she started. _Damn, it's really him. _

"Yeah, that's me."

"Um…Tsunade-sama just gave me this little task. She said very that I have to give this to you," the redhead stated as she placed Kakashi's whatsoever on the side table.

"Thanks…" Kakashi stared at the woman. "Are you new?"

"Yes, yes I am," the woman smirked with sarcasm. "Got a problem with that?" Kakashi didn't say anything, but, boy, is she rude. And he was a little certain that he'd seen her face somewhere before. _...Since when does Tsunade give me a pack of weird medicine??_

"I'm off. Get well…" her faced hardened after the dead silence between them.

"Hey, you didn't give me your name…" Kakashi called out. The strange woman turned and gave him a shocked expression. _He wants to know my name?! This guy has a lack of memory in his genius little brain. Someone needs to bring this dude down_!!!

"Why? It's not like we'll be hanging out like we're companions."

"I just want to know just in case we meet up again. Let me start. I'm Kakashi," he smiled under his mask.

"Hi, Kakashi. Bye, Kakashi." Right after she said it, Izumi stormed out of the room, not really caring at how rude she's been to him. The _Copy Ninja_. _Him_….

"When someone says their name for introduction, you introduce back, woman," Kakashi muttered under his breath in obvious annoyance.

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**Izumichan90: Yeah, it took me a while to finish a stinkin' chapter. I hope you liked it, but you don't have to right away.**

**Kakashi: Don't like the story. I suggest you read Icha Icha series. **

**Izumichan90: shut up, jerk. No one's talking to you. **

**Kakashi: Review so you can make this annoying author happy. I don't really care much, but yeah…**

**Izumichan90: You don't even know my name, you idiot. You're not using the right noun here. I have a name.**

**Kakashi: -sighs- Like I said review.**

**Izumichan90: Jerk, you didn't do the disclaimer! Whatever I'll do it. –takes out a bullhorn and yells- I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!!!**

**Kakashi: -mutters- thank goodness for that…**

**Izumichan90: -ignores him and continues to yell through the bullhorn- I ONLY OWN THE OC CHARACTER AND THE PLOT, WELL EXCEPT MOST OF THE PLOT!!! AND PLEASE REVIEW FOR THE SAKE OF MY HAPPINESS!!! ARIGATOU EVERYONE! I CAN'T WAIT FOR A REVIEW OR TWO!!!! AND IGNORE THE JERK SITTING RIGHT BESIDE ME! HE'S JUST JEALOUS THAT HE DOESN'T HAVE A LIFE!!!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Izumichan90: Hi everyone! I had a HUGE writer's block and I absolutely hate having that! I'm really sorry since I published this story at April something and I haven't been updating ever since. Even at summer break (that's like three months), I didn't get to update it. Sorry people! I shouldn't be complaining right now 'cause it wouldn't do any good. Anyway, Kakashi here is nice enough to do the disclaimer for us! Hey, get your lazy ass over here Kakashi!**

**Kakashi: Yeah, sorry I'm late… So, uh, this girl here does not own Naruto or whatsoever. **

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****Chapter 2**

Walking through the hallway, Izumi pondered about the man she talked to not too long ago. She hummed on her way out of the hospital until her abdomen growled. "Hungry…again," she sighed and looked for a place to eat. The redhead fastened her pace hoping there will be something for her.

After five minutes of strolling, Izumi spotted a sign that read _Ichiraku Ramen_. Her mouth drooled at the thought of ramen. She loved ramen, and it's been a long time since she ate one bowl of it. So when she saw the word "ramen", Izumi couldn't help but rush in the stand. "Hello!" she happily greeted at the two ramen workers. One was a young female and the other was an older man in his forties. _I take it that they're father and daughter_, Izumi thought as she took a seat.

"Hello, welcome to our ramen stand!" the man replied with grin. "I'm Teuchi and this is my daughter Ayame, if you've never been here!"

Izumi smiled back, "Hi, I'm Izumi Takahashi. I moved here from Suna, but I used to live here back when I was young."

Ayame stopped what she was doing and turned to her, "You came from Suna? That's a long journey for you!"

"Heh, actually, I traveled farther once, since I'm a jonin and all that. The Kazekage would always send me to missions that take days to get to one place."

"You know, Takahashi is a very familiar surname. Do you have a family here?" Teuchi asked the redhead.

"Well…yeah, I used to…You've probably heard of my dad, Yuuto," Izumi shifted in her seat and tapping her finger anxiously when she mentioned her father's name.

"Ah, that's right. I remember him. I can't believe you're his daughter. You've grown than the last time I saw you," Teuchi smiled and asked, "well, what do you want to eat, Izumi?"

Izumi scratched her cheek with a finger, thinking on what to eat. "Hmm…I think I'll order Ichiraku Ramen Special…" The two workers nodded and Ayame got to her cooking right away. Teuchi helped his daughter with the ingredients and stir the ramen. They finally finished, and Ayame placed the bowl in front of Izumi. "Enjoy your meal!"

"Wow, thanks!" Izumi took a pair of chopsticks. The ramen smelled so mouth-watering, making her hungry. She sniffed once more, and got right to eating. "This is great! Everything is perfect in this ramen bowl! Thank you!"

"Well, you're great at appreciating our ramen! You can come here anytime…that is, if you're staying in Konoha," Teuchi gave her a grin.

Ayame jumped in. "You know, Izumi, we should be friends! I'd love to get to know you more. By the way…how old are you?"

"How old am I? I'm twenty-nine….turning thirty this year…"

Teuchi's jaw literally dropped, "Y-you…YOU'RE going to be thirty? I thought you're only twenty-five!"

"Nah, I'm going to be thirty. I look old; it shouldn't be a surprise to you."

"To be frank, Izumi, you look…young," Ayame said, confused.

"That's what people say, but the truth is I am thirty," Izumi looked at her watch, "Uh…I gotta go. Thanks for the meal! Money's on the table!"

"Oh…Bye!" the father and daughter called out as she left the stand.

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"Meh…where should I go today…?" Izumi sighed as she strolled. Then, an idea clicked in her head. _Maybe I should go see my old friends_… She snickered at the thought and searched for the people she knew in the past. As she walked, she looked around the village. The village hasn't changed a bit, except for the Fifth Hokage's face on the mountain along with the past Hokages. She continued to pace, until she saw two people who looked familiar stroll by.

There was a man and a woman. The man had brown eyes, short and black spiky hair and beard. His clothing is the standard Konoha ninja uniform and the green vest. The woman looked to be a kunoichi with long dark hair, and very unique eyes that are red in color. Her regular outfit consists of mesh armor, as well as a red blouse with only the right sleeve visible. Over this is what resembles bandages with a pattern on it similar to those of rose thorns. Her hands are also wrapped in bandages and she wears the Konoha forehead protector and regular shinobi sandals.

Izumi smiled a mock grin. It's been a long time since she saw those two together. However, this kind of "walking together" is a little different from the last time she remembered. "Those two must have chemistry…heh." She followed them, and of course trying to hide.

As she followed, she tried to blend in with the villagers to make sure she doesn't get spotted by them. They walked pass a dango shop, where another woman Izumi knew came out. The woman had light brown, pupil-less eyes. Her violet hair is done up in a short, somewhat spiky ponytail. She wears a tan overcoat, complete with a fitted mesh body suit that stretches from her neck down to her thighs. The mesh seems to be somewhat transparent, since her body can be seen underneath. She wears a dark orange skirt, as well as a forehead protector, a small pendant, and shin guards.

Izumi couldn't hold it any longer. She had to see them again. The three people she is seeing are one of her friends, and she missed them lots. The redhead sprinted to their direction looking all happy. "Anko! Kurenai! Asuma!" she called as she approached them. The three turned to the red haired woman who called their names. Izumi smiled, "Hey! It's been a while!"

Anko scratched the back of her head looking puzzled, "Uh…do I know you…?"

Izumi's smile faded in disbelief. She frowned, "You don't remember me? How could you?"

"No, no…Sorry, but I don't know who the heck you are," Anko said again. Izumi sighed in annoyance. _This purple head is unbelievable…_she thought.

"Geez…you don't even remember a girl who's been your friend twelve years ago? What is wrong with you?"

Anko glared at Izumi, "Seriously, woman! I don't think we've met!"

Izumi turned to blue-haired man, "Hey, Asuma, you remember me right?" The male flinched and scratched the back of his head with a cigarette in his mouth. Then, she turned to the crimson-eyed woman, "How about you, Kurenai? Do you remember me?"

"Of course, it's been a while, Izumi," Kurenai gave her a warm smile.

Izumi pointed her finger at Kurenai and glared at the other two, "See? Even Kurenai remembers me! The two of you are total disappointment!"

"Izumi….where have I heard of that name…?" the two clueless Jonin pondered.

Kurenai sighed at her companions and said one word, "Kakashi."

Anko's jaw dropped and hugged Izumi tightly, "OHMIGOSH! It's been a while, Izumi!"

"You remembered me because of him?" the redhead gasped at the purple head's tight hug.

"W-well…" Izumi silenced her with an annoyed expression.

"Izumi, when did you come back?" Kurenai asked her.

"Uh…I came back just this morning…like at dawn."

Kurenai was about to say something, but Anko cut her off, "Hey, this is a great day! Let's celebrate, Izumi!"

Izumi stared at the snake lady, puzzled. "Celebrate for what?"

"You know…you came back so we should party! It's all on me! At the dango shop!"

"It's your treat? Really?" the redhead replied in sarcasm. "I thought you're low on money for eating too much of sweets and dangos."

"Pft! Who said I was low on money?" Anko rolled her eyes, wondering who made up of such stupid idea as that.

"Uh, I'd love to see you spending your money on me, but I have to meet up with Lady Hokage. There are still things I need to do," Izumi smiled sadly at her friends.

"Aww…Okay, then. Wait, you'd _love_ to see me spending my cash just for you? You have problems, woman!" Anko called out as Izumi walked away with a wave.

"That girl, she hasn't changed a bit," Asuma said as he blew into his cigarette. The crimson-eyed female next to him nodded in agreement. The both of them turned to the purple head that had an irritated face. "Hey, Anko, what's up?" the male jonin asked.

"That woman pisses me of sometimes! Did you hear her say that she wants to see me spend all of my cash just for her?"

"That's Izumi for you," Kurenai simply stated as the three of them walked.

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"So, Tsunade-sama…I actually want to pay for my house today…" Izumi told the blonde.

"Hmm? I thought I told you to just pay it tomorrow."

"I have the money to pay for the house. Besides, I might forget to pay it the next day."

Tsunade sighed and stopped with her paperwork. "Alright. Give me the money then."

Izumi gave the Hokage a look, "You're not going to use it for gambling are you?"

"Why would you say that? I'd never do such thing to the villagers' money," Tsunade cleared her throat, trying to hide her lies. "Wait, how do you know I gamble?"

"Oh, so you don't remember me personally? That's a shame," Izumi exhaled some breath as she place her hand on her jaw.

"Oh, I can't believe this. I didn't recognize you. Izumi, where have you been in the past several years?"

"I went back to Suna with my mom. Didn't she tell you that?"

"I suppose she didn't tell me anything about it. Anyway, your house is actually an apartment. You don't mind do you?"

"I don't mind. At least I live somewhere," the redhead shrugged her shoulders.

Tsunade checked the bill, "Well, the apartment cost 13,103 Ryo, including the basic furniture that's already in there."

Izumi cocked an eyebrow, "13,103 Ryo? That's it? I didn't realize it would be so cheap."

"It's just an apartment, after all."

"Sure, sure... I have the cash right now so don't fret."

"Now that you mention it, your mother's family is wealthy. If I spent 13,103 Ryo, I'd get pissed off for losing a lot of money," Tsunade chuckled.

"That's just you…and who would've that _you're _the Fifth Hokage? No offense, really."

"Being Hokage isn't that bad, but I have to babysit those annoying old advisors."

"Haha…" Izumi laughed as she sweat dropped. She took out the cash out of her pouch and handed it to the blonde Hokage.

"I guess you weren't joking about having the money…" Tsunade muttered as she took the money from her hands.

"Oh, I was wondering, do have anything I can do to help? I'm bored right now, and I have no idea what to do."

Tsunade thought for a minute. "Well, I wanted to check a patient in the hospital. However, with all of these stupid papers tempting me to read them, I can't go there at this time. Do you mind checking him for me?"

"Uh…him? Who's the guy?" Izumi fidgeted her fingers uneasily wondering who this person she's supposed to check on.

"Damn, promise not to get mad at me, okay?"

Izumi stared into the blonde's brown eyes. "Who is the guy?"

"Don't look at me like that. It's only Kakashi, big deal. You gave some medicine to him earlier didn't you? Then you know where his room is."

"B…but!"

"Sorry, you asked for something to do. Run along now. I'll see you later, Izumi." Tsunade waved at the redhead. Izumi frowned and left.

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**I am so sorry I didn't update as soon as possible! I'm such a bad girl TT^TT. Anyway, I'll try to update as soon as possible for the next chapter. For now review :). Oh, you know what? I think the update will take longer because I have a lot of stupid homework in the way so yeah. Don't get mad at me. Blame the school. Bye Bye!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! I'm here again! So I have nothing to say, but read the third chapter. Enjoy ^_^.**

**Oh, by the way, I don't own Naruto or whatsoever. I only own my OC character(s).**

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**Chapter 3**

Izumi stood by the door of a certain patient's room, shoulders slumped. She took a few minutes pacing, thinking. Then she slightly opened the door and peeked in. He was there, but it seems he's not awake yet. Izumi shut the door again and leaned on the wall. _What am I doing?_ She wondered to herself over and over again. _It's just a stupid check up._

The redhead opened the door again and tiptoed in the silent room. She craned her neck to see if Kakashi is awake, only to find that his eyes are shut. Just looking at his face makes her face reddens a little. She rushed to the door for the escape.

"Who is it?" Kakashi mumbled as he opened his eyes. Izumi cringed and turned around to see him gawking at her. She shuffled her feet on the floor with her hands behind her back.

"It's me...again. Sorry to interrupt your sleep," she apologized and walked over to the injured man. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay, I guess. I'm not a big fan of hospitals, you see," Kakashi's lower half of his face was covered, but Izumi can see his eyes curve into a smile. She nodded and began to walk away to the door. "Where are you going?" she heard him call out.

"I still have to go somewhere...not that it's your business or anything..."

"Well if you have time, how about staying here for a while? I haven't seen you around so why don't we get to know each other?"

_Bastard_... Izumi thought, _he doesn't remember me after all_... she sighed and met his opened eye. "I guess I can stay. If you don't think I'm a bother then I'll just hang around for a bit."

"So, where are you from?" Kakashi asked.

"Hidden Sand Village," the redhead replied bluntly. _I'm starting to dislike this guy..._

"Really? Then you heard about what recently happened to the Kazekage?"

"Of course, he's a relative of mine. I heard some shinobi from this village helped out to find him..." Izumi trailed off.

"I happened to be one of those shinobi you're talking about. Chasing and fighting the Akatsuki with my Sharingan really exhausts me. That's how I ended up here."

"Uh-huh..."

"Hmm... did you say that you are a relative of Gaara?"

"Yeah, what of it?"

Kakashi studied her face for a moment then replied, "You look really familiar. This isn't your first time coming here right?"

"Yeah...?" Izumi sighed annoyingly, but the man on the bed didn't seem to notice her attitude.

"What is your name?"

"Me? I'mー"

"Well, well, don't you look silly, huh Kakashi?" another voice spoke up from the window. Kakashi and Izumi stared at the window only to find Jiraiya sitting right there. "I heard what happened to you," the toad sage place three books of Kakashi's favorite on the side table. "You've probably read all of this, but it should keep you busy."

"Thank you..."

Jiraiya kept his eyes focus at the woman with red hair and green eyes. "Izumi, is that you?"

Izumi looked away from his gaze and answered, "Yeah, it's me. It's been a while, Jiraiya-sama."

"Haha! You still look the same as always! The same gorgeous Izumi finally shows her face in this village again, huh?"

"I-I... Hehehe...yes, I still look the same. Almost everyone I know back home mentions that every year on my birthday," Izumi's cheeks turned red a little at the Sannin's compliment. "I've come back for many reasons. Although my main reason for coming back is to just chill out."

"Well! Your personality sort of changed though. I thought you were the innocent and honest kind of a girl?" Jiraiya gave her a goofy smile and a slight chuckle.

"Huh...a certain someone took away that personality of mine. My father have always wanted me to stay pure."

"Whoever that is, must be the idiot one! I've always made fun of your clueless and not guilty character!" Izumi grinned at the not-so-old Sannin and then her eyes flickered to the gray-haired jonin laying down on the hospital bed. Kakashi was gawking at her again, making her more uncomfortable by his uncontrollable gaze.

"So how's your mother? Ever since she left your father and brought you along, he's been depressed and felt guilty that he thought it was all his fault."

That caught Izumi's attention. Her eyes saddened a little at the mention of that event. "My mother sort of felt guilty too. However, it's neither their fault that they separated. I think it is I that has to take the blame."

The Toad Sage was shocked at her reply. "You're taking the blame of the divorce of your parents?"

Izumi nodded. "Well I don't want to talk about it yet... I'll tell you sometime." Jiraiya understood this by nodding his head to her. Then he turned to Kakashi whose eyes were still focused at the redhead. "Kakashi, there's a reason I stopped by."

The jonin finally broke his gaze away from Izumi and stared at the Sannin. Jiraiya continued on, "Hmm...I heard from Tsunade that she'll be looking for a substitute captain for Team Kakashi. By the looks of it though, it seemed like she already had it sorted out. She picked someone from the ANBU and had given him the codename of 'Yamato'. They will be arriving soon for a discussion." Kakashi nodded slowly and stared at the ceiling.

Izumi just sat there, her green orbs staring into space with boredom. She wondered if she can get out of the room now so Kakashi wouldn't ask questions about how Jiraiya knew her. Well, it's his fault that he can't remember her very well. She could see that confusion in his eyes as she and Jiraiya talk about herself. She also wondered if he really did forget about her for good for the past twelve years when she left. It is really difficult to have so many thoughts in her head. She wondered why she cared if Kakashi remembers her or not. As she watched one of the Legendary Sannin help Kakashi sit up, she asked herself why Obito gave that guy his Sharingan. If it weren't for that eye, then Kakashi wouldn't have gotten well-known around the world. Well, for Izumi, she only got famous because of her father, who was one of the most powerful shinobi the world last mentioned.

"So, Izumi," Jiraiya called out her name, snapping her out of daze, "what have you been up to when you got back to the Hidden Sand Village?"

"I haven't been doing anything but playing with music. You know, the piano and stuff. My mother's been wanting me to socialize with the villagers there, but I refused. I'm became the type to be anti-social."

"Did you take part of the invasion that the Sand and Sound Ninjas planned out during the Chuunin Exams a few years back?"

"No, I didn't know about it until I got back. I was on vacation, see. I was sort of...upset about what happened. Next thing I knew, our two villages became allies."

Jiraiya chuckled out loud and then said, "I bet the guys in your village were drooling over you. Don't you have a boyfriend, Izumi?"

The redhead snorted and replied, "I don't have time for a boyfriend. They end up breaking a girl's heart. That's all they do until they are satisfied with the right girl. I still don't get why guys often cheat on their girlfriend with another ugly lady probably. If I had a boyfriend that did cheat on me, I'd probably just slap him."

The toad sage chuckled as if he understood her again. "Well, that is probably the most common reaction for a girl to do! You are a great entertainer, Izumi." Jiraiya then turned to Kakashi, still seeing him staring at Izumi. "Kakashi, aren't you glad that this redhead came back?"

Kakashi gave him a puzzled look on his face. "Who exactly is she?"

Jiraiya's jaw slightly dropped in shock. "Kakashi, you don't remember the beautiful woman sitting right next to you?" he shook his head in disappointment. The masked jonin slowly rocked his head from left to right saying that he does not remember.

Then, Izumi felt that someone was coming to the room. After Jiraiya said that he will be discussing something, she can guess that the people coming will be Tsunade and this "Yamato" person. As Izumi expected, the door opened revealing the blonde Fifth Hokage, Shizune, and a brunette man that she thought looked familiar. The three of them stepped in and greeted the other three who were already in Kakashi's hospital room. They all gathered around the injured's bed. Izumi's green eyes eyed the man who was supposed to be called "Yamato".

"Hello, Izumi! It's been a while hasn't it?" Yamato greeted the red-haired woman whose eyes widened in surprise. Now how did he know her?

"Tenzou...?" she questioningly muttered and it hit her on the brain. "Hey! It's been a while! How you been?"

"Very well, thank you. When did you get back, Izumi?"

"Just early today. I was only here for a couple of hours."

"You haven't changed a bit, I mean your looks and all. Aren't you turning thirty this year? You don't look like one!"

"Say what you want. I've been getting used to that kind of compliment."

Kakashi looked back and forth between the two chattering adults next to the bed. People knowing this redhead is starting to irritate him a little. "Kakashi-senpai, it's been a while." Looking up, he saw the brunette ANBU smiling down at him.

"Hmm...now I remember you. So you're Yamato, huh?"

"That's right. I'll try my best as captain of Team Kakashi."

"All right, then," the gray-haired elite ninja nodded and stared at Izumi again. "Yamato, how do you know Izumi?"

He could see the redhead cringed a little and decided to ignore her and waited for Yamato to reply. The substitute captain of Team Kakashi was surprised at his question.

The brunette man scratched the back of his head and met the redhead's green eyes. She just shrugged and acted like she care about anything. Yamato tried to gather up his words before saying a word. "W-well, Izumi was your childhood friend...and...I mean, you've met her since your Academy years." He thought of more of an explanation. "She's the daughter of the famous shinobi Yuuto. You remember him, right...? He was friends with your father." The gray-haired man just nodded and listened for more information. "Yes, so you and Izumi were the 'genius' kids in your class..." Yamato couldn't think of anymore to say and was getting annoyed at Kakashi's confusion. "Let's cut to the chase! She was your girlfriend!"

Izumi's eyebrow twitched at his last sentence. "Ex! I told you last time not to mention that word!"

"S-sorry...but he had the right to know..."

"Ah...yes, I remember you now. Izumi, it's good to see you again..." The woman's red-haired eyebrow twitched again.

"Be quiet you total idiot. I swore that I don't want to see your masked face again." she muttered under her breath and gave Kakashi a death glare.

"What did I do wrong this time?" he asked, puzzled again.

"Wrong choice of words. It's not what you did this time, but a few years back. I'm not telling you anything about it because I don't want to waste my breath on you." Now this made Kakashi even more confused. What did he do a several years ago that made her hate him? Izumi can see the expression on his face. She ignored that look and stomped her way out of the hospital room, leaving everyone looking at her back in shock. Who knew that she had that kind of personality in her?

"Kakashi, what did you do that made such woman get enraged? Even at something that was a long time ago...I wonder what you did..." Jiraiya snorted.

"Everything is confusing, but we are not here to talk about that," Tsunade cleared her throat before saying more, "We are here to discuss a very important matter that Yamato here should know since he will be the substitute for Team Kakashi."

_Problems...?_ Yamato thought but gave out no expression on his face.

* * *

"I'm back, Teuchi and Ayame!" Izumi said as she entered the ramen stand. The father and daughter stopped on what they were doing and greeted the redhead customer.

"We're glad you're back, Izumi!" Ayame said and went closer to chat with her. "So what is your order going to be?"

Izumi's eyes scanned the menu for a minute and a half. 'I want something different this time...' The younger woman in front of her tried to be patient as much as she could. She watched Izumi read the list of ramen bowl until the redhead gave the menu back. "I want one bowl of that miso ramen, please."

"Coming right up!" the ramen girl then went to make some miso ramen. Izumi waited and looked around. It was then she noticed she wasn't alone. Three seats away from her was a teenage boyーlike about fifteen years oldーeating his ramen like he was in a different world. He ate everything in the bowl lovingly. To Izumi, he resembled someone she once knew in her younger years in Konoha.

The boy had spiky blonde hair and blue or sapphire looking eyes. He has three whisker marks on each side of his cheeks. The blonde wore a black and orange jacket matched with black pants. Izumi gave out a small smile and sat closer to the boy, sitting next to him to be specific. "You're Naruto Uzumaki, am I right?"

Naruto stuffed the last bit of his ramen in his mouth and placed the bowl in front of him. He stared at the red-haired woman next to him. "Yeah, I'm Naruto Uzumaki. And you are...?"

_He's matured well. Not bad for an orphan._ Izumi closed her eyes with a grin and replied, "I'm Izumi Takahashi. I've heard so much about you from the Kazekage."

"Really? Gaara told you about me?" Naruto returned a smile to the woman.

"Of course, he always tells me and his siblings that you changed him and he thought becoming Kazekage because of you." Ayame placed her miso ramen in front of her. Izumi thanked her and took out some chopsticks from the chopsticks box.

"Hehe...well, Gaara and I are very similar, especially about our childhood. I understood his pain like he understood mine."

"I see. After all, you hold that Kyuubi right?" she said casually while eating the noodles in her ramen bowl.

Naruto frowned at the mention of him holding the beast. "Yeah...I'm the Kyuubi's jinchuuriki."

Izumi paused to look at the boy. "Lady Tsunade believed that the only person who understands a jinchuuriki is another jinchuuriki. That was well said. Don't you agree?" Naruto nodded and observed the woman more.

"Say, since you know Gaara means you've known him for a long time. What's your connection?"

The redhead chuckled a little and answered, "I've been watching Gaara since he was little. Maybe because of the Shukaku that used to be inside him." She slurped more of the ramen before continuing on, "In fact, I'm Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara's cousin."

Naruto's blue eyes widened in shock. "Their cousin? You...?"

"Yes, their cousin, young grasshopper."

"Whoa...who would've thought that they'd have another relative out there?" Naruto blinked several times before looking back at Izumi.

"Now that we know each other, officially, why don't you tell me about yourself?" Izumi said, finishing her bowl of ramen.

Naruto grinned his goofy grin, "I love to eat ramen! You should know by now since you saw the way I ate my ramen! Hehe..." Izumi smiled, remembering Minato-sensei. "My dream is to become stronger so I can become Hokage someday! That way the village will acknowledge me and respect me for who I am not because I'm the jinchuuriki."

Izumi's green eyes blinked. Now she knows how Gaara thought of becoming Kazekage in the first place. She giggled and burst out laughing out loud. Naruto gawked at her in confusion, wondering what he had said. "Naruto, that is a very reachable dream. From the looks of it, you're already getting stronger. Follow that path you're going, and that dream of yours is surely going to come true. Another thing, don't let the bad stuff block your path 'cause it will become a problem. In conclusion, I'll be one of the people who will support you just like I supported Gaara."

Naruto smiled again feeling like he had another important person on his list. He looked at the time. "Ahh...I have to get going! I have to meet Sakura-chan and our two new group members of Team Kakashi." he stood up and waved. "I'll see you later, Izumi! Thanks for that little speech of yours!"

"All right, see you later, Naruto." Izumi waved back and watched Naruto leave. She grinned again as Naruto's figure slowly got smaller when he went farther into the village road. She turned around and went back in Ichiraku Ramen.

Teuchi grinned at the redhead. "Naruto's a great kid. Aren't you glad that you met a kid like him?"

"Yes..." Izumi smiled again, "Yes, I am. He could be a great role model. I can tell by just seeing his face." She took some money out of her pocket and place it on the counter. "Thank you for the meal. I'll see you later."

"We look forward to serving you again, Izumi!" Ayame thanked her and bowed.

* * *

**GASP! I finished the third chapter! Wow ^_^ Please review. I also take some criticism so I can improve on this story. Thank you very much! Oh, there will be some time that I may be editing some chapters just to make sure they turned out okay.  
**


	4. Chapter 4

I woke up when the ray of sunlight hit my window. I yawned and squinted through the light's glare and then put my hand over my eyes. The ring of my stupid alarm clock startled me. I groaned and covered my entire slim body with my blanket. I didn't want to turn off that annoying clock...wait but if I don't then the ring won't stop. I sighed. What kind of life am I in?

I got my languid self out of my comfortable bed. The ring of the alarm clock finally shut up the moment I hit the snooze button. Checking the time, I realized that I got up kind of early. The latest and usual time I ever woken up was at noon, so waking up at seven is too early for me. Dragging myself to the kitchen, I was half asleep. I took out my instant noodles out of the pantry and sunk the noodles with boiling water.

I never ate a normal breakfast. Sure, I can cook and get complimented and satisfy myself, but I never have the feeling to cook for myself. Back in the Hidden Sand, I only cooked for dinner. When I cook dinner, my family is happy.

I blew the noodles to get them to cool down and chewed them slowly. My eyes scanned the kitchen and the living room and realized that I've got to get some furniture to get my house...roomy.

When I finished, I threw the empty Styrofoam noodle cup away in the trash and headed to my bedroom. I took some of my everyday clothes out of my drawer and walked to the bathroom.

I took my sleeping clothes off and went in the shower. Putting the water temperature to warm, I closed my eyes and relaxed for a while. Well, I didn't really relax. My mind suddenly stopped on Kakashi. I frowned to myself. I couldn't get his face out of my mind. To shake the thoughts away, I splashed my face with the warm water.

I totally missed living here. The village hasn't changed a bit since the last time I was here. I left when I was only seventeen and I still look exactly the same. I couldn't change my weight for some reason. I took the towel and wrapped myself with it. Looking at the mirror by the sink, I wondered if there is a way to change my figure.

People say I'm scrawny...or slim. I've gotten used to be called that. Everything about me is skinny on the legs, the arms, and my upper body. Yes, I do eat a bunch of meat, and my figure still wouldn't change. I may be skinny and not proud of it, but perverts drool over me. I know, it's disgusting. That's one of the reasons I became anti-social.

Now that I mentioned the perverts, people can also tell that I'm the most popular female in the Hidden Sand. There is a chance that people in the Hidden Leaf can stalk me as well. I'm not very pleased with these humans, surely, there has to be another beautiful girl out there, right?

I should tell you the details on my appearance. I happen to be five feet six inches tall. The height made me look like a model, as most men say. Considering on how slim I am, my weight is only one hundred and two pounds. To me, that is dang skinny. I'm turning thirty for crying out loud. My dark red hair (a trait that I inherited from my father) reached up to knees. The shape of my eyes made me look like a teenager. My emerald iris came from my mother, the woman that my relatives said on who I resemble the most.

When I was in the Hidden Sand, I almost never left our manor. Therefore, my skin color is like a lighter kind of peach. I think it's unusual for a desert girl like me to have a skin that light.

I put on my clothes. When I do nothing, all I wore are skinny jeans and a yellow off-shoulder blouse followed by a yellow bead necklace. As for my shoes, I just have my black shinobi shoes. I have more clothes in my drawer but this pair of clothing seems to be my favorite. My mother offered to buy me some clothes. I was grateful but made it very clear that I'm the one who should pick on what I want.

My parents were well-known. My father was famous for being one of the most powerful geniuses among shinobi besides Sakumo Hatake. He was well feared by most of the ninja he encounters on a mission. I looked up to him ever since I entered the Academy here in the Hidden Leaf. I missed him very dearly, and I have no idea about his whereabouts. The citizens in the Hidden Sand believed that he had passed away. I don't believe in some of that. Yuuto Takahashi should still be alive somewhere in this world. He was born here in the Leaf. People recognized him with his red hair and hazel eyes.

Midori Takahashi, my mom, was famed because she came from a unbelievably wealthy family. Not only was she wealthy, but unsurprisingly attractive. She is known beautiful face, blonde hair that reached to the middle of that back, and dazzling green eyes. She is the twin of my cousins' mother, Karura. My mother was a great ninja, too. Her birthplace is in the desert village where I was born.

Now you may be wondering how a Leaf shinobi married a woman from the Sand. It's sort of a long story, but the basis was the arranged marriage. Actually my father met my mother when they cooperated on a mission together. I still don't understand how, but my dad secretly told me that he fell in love with her the moment they met each others' eyes. Wow... Just like in romantic books and movies. I guess Yuuto Takahashi was in rapture when he met my mom.

I took my last step to get out of my house and locked the door. I placed the key in my pocket and took out my favorite book. The plot of the story was getting a little exciting, so I tend to read it while I'm pacing around. Moving my eyes back and forth, I happened to bump into another person. The human was short, so I take it that it was a child.

"Hey, can't you at least say sorry for once, lady?" a boy's voice yelled behind me. I closed my book with my index finger bookmarking the page I was on. There were three children, about twelve I presume. Two boys and a girl accompanied by a man with round sunglasses covering his eyes.

"I'm sorry, I guess I got carried away with my book here," I chuckled nervously with my hand rubbing the back of my head.

"Well, you could've at least watched where you're going!" the boy with the black spiky hair in the middle yelled again. The man with the sunglasses flinched.

He said to the boy, "Konohamaru, please show some respect to Izumi-san," he turned to me and bowed chivalrously. "Forgive me, Izumi-san. My student will learn to respect his elders."

I didn't even try to give him a puzzled expression. Instead, I smiled and said in reply, "Don't worry about it. It's not the boy's fault. He was precise; I should've watched where I was going."

The boy Konohamaru giggled, "See? She even admitted that it's her fault!"

"Konohamaru, this woman isn't just an ordinary woman. She's the famous Izumi Takahashi," the sensei pushed back his glasses. "Izumi is known around the world. That's why I told you to show respect."

I blinked several times. Now that you mention it... "Say, aren't you Ebisu?"

"Yes, I am. I'm in charge of this squad. This boy here is Konohamaru, Udon, and the female is Moegi."

I grinned my usual grin. "I see. It's nice to meet you all."

Moegi, the girl, walked up to me, with sparkling eyes. "It's really you! I dreamed of meeting you in person, Izumi-san! You're my role model!"

"Is that right? I'm glad to meet such a cute girl such as yourself, Moegi."

Konohamaru huffed with annoyance. "Sensei, can we go now? We have to catch that stupid cat again!"

"He's right," Udon at last spoke up. "We should go since we're supposed to leave in a few minutes."

"Very well," Ebisu turned to me and bowed again. "We will be off now. We'll see you some other time."

"Alrighty, then. I'll see you later."

The squad headed to the opposite of where I was heading. It's kind of odd that I bump to some people I never met. I've been gone for such a long time, and remembering everyone I scarcely talk to can get me crazy.

My destination was to go to the library. Unfortunately my mother is still forcing me to read something educational. Hah, educational. I already know everything. I didn't mean to show off or anything. Well, I guess visiting the library isn't that bad, since I love reading books. I read the ones that have something to do with fictional, mathematics, and a little of science. I am a little tedious because I love to learn. The library is located far back in the village. It wasn't much of a problem, though.

The time took me about forty-five minutes to finally get there. I was greeted by a few women who watched over the building. I headed to the...educational stuff. "Mother, I'm turning thirty yet you still want me to read educational lessons that I already know," I muttered to myself so no one can hear.

Sitting down at the empty tables, I opened the first book I found when I came here. As usual, calculus is full of integral calculus whatsoever.

F'(x) = ƒ(x)

ƒ(x) dx = F(x) + C, where C is a constant.

That's the first thing I saw when I turned to a page. I groaned quietly and turned to another page. More formulas to add in my nightmares. I'm kind of pleased that I was able to remember all this when I was younger. Yes, in my youthful years as an Academy student, I was placed in a very advanced class filled with teenagers. Kakashi...I mean, the guy and I were the youngest in our class. Funny, because the both of us humiliated the older kids by outranking them as geniuses.

Now you can see how my life went so weird and smart. Normally I wouldn't care if I was bright or not. Although, something made me care that I liked being a smart kid.

I spent thirty minutes on reading calculus. After that, I moved on to the science subject. I read biology, physics, and chemistry. At one part, I admiringly stared at the periodic table of elements. That part usually gets my full attention even though I didn't want to. The elements such as gold, titanium, antimony...well all of the elements to be specific. They had me scanning the entire periodic table.

Putting back the books in their shelves, one book that was in the wrong section caught my eye. I had my hand to reach it, and gaped at the label. Who in the world would put the Icha Icha Series in the library shelf? I apprehensively eyed the orange book with the bizarre front cover. I just shrugged and decided to give it a try.

Sitting down, I slowly opened the book to the very first page of the story. Okay, so it starts out with a main male character searching for... a place to drink? I'll have to guess that he's searching for a bar, the place with beer and wine and stuff. So, the male finally finds that place and turned out to be a... My eyes widened in astonishment. Did Jiraiya put...I squinted at the word to make sure I'm seeing it right. Oh my... yes he did. He put... strip club.

The male finds all of these beautiful women dancing on stage...his eyes zeroed on the most gorgeous female onstage. It is described that she has a long brunette hair with brown eyes... After the show was over, the woman meets with the man after leaving the bar. They bump into each other and met like love at first sight. They introduced themselves and walked together.

I read further...chapter after chapter... Then finally got to the most disturbing scene. I closed the book with a vein popping out of my head in irritation. These men, referring to Kakashi and Jiraiya, are the most perverted men in history I have ever met. Of course the Toad Sage is one since he peeps in the women's bath at the hot springs. _That's why I refuse to go there because of that old Sannin. _

I shoved the book back to where I found it and left the building. I glanced around at the surroundings as I got outside. Where should I go next? I sighed and decided to just walk around the village. The village is pretty big, and has a lot of tourist attractions. Then, one specific place appeared in my mind and smiled. It's located far away from where I'm standing right now.

I paced through the village to get to the place. I wouldn't run, maybe because I don't want people to think that I'm some peculiar woman. I got lost on the way, but I manage to get back on track again.

I'm finally there. The Memorial Stone...where my best friend's name is carved there. I checked to see if anyone I knew passed away and their names are written on this stone. There's the Third Hokage. Hayate's name is here, too? I wonder what happened. Wow... So many people in the village were killed in action to help save this village. I continued to search for the name of my friend.

Oh, here it is. Obito Uchiha...the friend whom I opened up to...my first "crush". Honestly, he was like a brother to me, but I like him more than just a friend. That is, until that event happened during the Third Great Shinobi World War. After his death, I learned that Obito liked Rin, my other best friend. I felt pretty bad for Obito because Rin showed an interest in Kakashi. And...later on as we grew up after the death of my friends, Kakashi said that he likes me. Now that I think about it, our group's relationship is like a love square...wow. I thought there were only love triangles.

I stayed by the stone for hours. Evening came, and I finally decided to head back home. I predict that tomorrow isn't going to be great. Oh well, I'll just sleep for the night to get some rest. Hopefully my mother won't preoccupy me in my dreams because I read some books. Total pain, I tell you... I chuckled at the thought. I yawned as I closed my eyes and slept on my bed.


	5. Chapter 5

The twenty-nine year old red-haired woman yawned out loud first thing in the morning. She headed towards the kitchen to prepare her usual breakfast: instant ramen. Izumi checked the warm water she had left in her thermos and realized that she forgot to refill it with water. She sighed.

Just as she was going to get some water, Izumi heard a thump on her apartment door. She frowned at what she was doing and looked at the door. Now who would stopover at her house this early in the morning? The knock came again. The redhead sighed, "I'm coming, I'm coming."

Izumi unlocked her door and opened it. There stood Shizune, the Fifth Hokage's "assistant". She held Tsunade's pet pig TonTon in her arms. "Shizune, what do you want so early in the morning...?" Izumi yawned after that.

Shizune gaped at her, perplexed and shocked at the same time. "Um...Izumi, it's twelve, it's already noon,"

Izumi looked back to her apartment and stared at the clock to see the time. "Huh...I guess it is already noon," she turned back to face the woman in front of her, "Well, what do you want anyway...?"

"Tsunade wants to see you."

The red-haired woman despairingly exhaled a breath before asking. "Right away...?"

"Yes, right now."

Izumi studied Shizune's face to make sure that the Hokage's summoning isn't too serious or stupid. She sighed again, "Fine, let me change my clothes first." Then she stomped to her bedroom, her eyes half-closed. Izumi went back outside, her sleeping clothes replaced with her casual outfit. "Lead the way," she said to Shizune with a bored tone in her voice.

Normally, she and Shizune with chatter all the time when they were younger. Instead, right now they are facing one of those awkward silences. Izumi decided to start up a conversation. "Hey, Shizune..."

The older woman turned around to face the redhead. She waited for her to say more. "How the heck did Tsunade even end up being Fifth Hokage?"

"Oh, that. You see, it was Naruto Uzumaki that convinced her to come back and run for Hokage postion."

Izumi raised an eyebrow. "Naruto...? Did he really...?"

"Yes, along with Jiraiya-sama. I was surprised that she accepted at the very end. But..."

"But...?"

Shizune dropped a sweat, "Tsunade looked like one of those people who is conscientious and organized with paperwork. It's just...did you see the way she acted when she talks about paperwork? When she just started a few years back, Tsunade would sleep on her desk and not being able to finish her papers."

"Ha-ha...she complained in front of me a few times when I got here..." Izumi chuckled.

"So, uh..." Shizune said.

"What is it?"

"About you and Kakashi-san..."

"I don't want to talk about it."

Shizune lowered her head after Izumi's reaction and the tone of her voice. "Oh...okay. Forget what I said."

Izumi realized that she was a little inconsiderate at her last reply. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be cruel. It's just that guy...is you know..,? I don't want to say anything about it now."

"That's alright. I can give you some privacy about that topic."

"Hmm...We're here. What does the blonde want from me...? Do you know, Shizune?"

"I have no idea. If I knew, then I would have told you back at your apartment."

Izumi clucked her tongue. "You have a point there."

The both of them entered the Hokage mansion in silence. Izumi pondered for a while, until she realized that she forgot to do something. _Crap! I forgot to brush my teeth and eat breakfast! Oh, no I didn't fix my hair either. What kind of a day is this turning into?_ She placed a hand in front of her mouth and exhaled. Good, her breath doesn't smell that bad. The only problem was her teeth. She decided to disregard that thought and used her hands to fix her red hair.

"Izumi, are you okay?" Shizune's voice startled Izumi and put her hands back down to her sides.

"Yeah, I'm fine! Let's keep going!"

Shizune knocked on office door of the Fifth Hokage. They were ordered to come in. They entered, and Izumi stood in front of Tsunade's desk while Shizune went to help the Hokage pile the papers on the side.

_Here comes the mystery command...'_"Lady Hokage, why did you call me to come all the way to your office...?"

"Because I'm ordering you to do something for the sake of your little irritability I witnessed the other day at Kakashi's hospital room," Tsunade spoke, ignoring the redhead's attitude. Izumi narrowed her eyes in thought at the blonde. "So I'm demanding you to get along with Kakashi again."

It was soundless after that. Izumi and Tsunade went eye to eye in a staring contest. Izumi's hand was placed underneath her chin and thought about the Hokage's request. The two other females before her waited for her response. Izumi yawned, "No thanks, I'll pass."

Tsunade glared at the woman. She knew that Izumi would reject that. However, she thought of something that can convince the red-haired woman to accept it. "Your reason for declining is because...?"

Izumi tiredly closed her eyes and yawned again. "My reason for declining is because of that man you call Kakashi. An idiot who reads perverted books is someone you don't want to get close with."

"Is that all...?" The blonde Hokage cocked an eyebrow at Izumi. She can guess that there are more reasons for the decline.

"I don't know if _that is all_..." the redhead opened her eyes to look at the Sannin in front of her."I think it's because it will be very awkward if you're in a room with your stupid ex. Yep, that is all for now."

"..." Tsunade went silent for a moment. Then she said, "I see. However that isn't the reason. I know you want to see Kakashi again, Izumi."

Izumi gawked at her, dumbfounded. "I do...?"

Tsunade nodded, "You said the other day that you promised that you didn't want to see him again. Still, why did you come back to the village?"

"Oh, that..." Izumi panicked in her mind. Dang, this busty old woman is good. She thought of something quickly. "I came here to get a vacation. Gaara wants to give me a break. He just chose for me to stay here for some reason."

"Don't you lie to me. Another thing, a few days ago, I ordered you to check Kakashi's condition."

"W-what about it...?"

"I told you to just check up on him," Tsunade smirked mockingly, "yet you stayed there for a while."

Izumi still panicked, but kept her face with no expression. "So? He wanted me to stay. 'Wants to get to know me,' he said."

"How long are you going to lie to me, Izumi?"

"I'm not lying."

"Yes, you are. Just tell me the truth."

"But I did tell the truth."

"You want to see Kakashi again."

"I don't want to see him again." The redhead kept her face expressionless. She would've just snapped at the Hokage, but she promised to herself not to drop her temper today.

"Kakashi wants to see you too."

"No, he doesn't. You don't even know that."

"I informed him that I will be sending you to the hospital. Don't keep him waiting." The blonde sighed.

"Then just go tell him that I'm not coming. Can I go home now?"

Shizune looked back and forth from Izumi and her master. She wondered how long they are going to keep this up. She decided to leave the two alone.

* * *

Two hours later...

Shizune came back to Tsunade's paper-filled office with some tea. Her jaw dropped when she saw Izumi and the Hokage still at it. "What the...?"

Tsunade groaned, "Izumi, I am still positive that you have feelings for Kakashi. Go see him. Now."

Izumi yawned like a bored woman, "I don't have feelings for Kakashi or anyone else. I still refuse to go see him."

"I can have you do some paperwork instead of seeing him. How about that?"

Izumi smirked somewhat. "Sure...paperwork sounds fun."

Tsunade and Shizune stared at her, thinking if they heard her say yes. The blonde Sannin asked, "You'd rather do paperwork?"

"Sure. I help my cousin with the papers. It was really amusing. Gaara and I finish with paperwork for only a few hours. Even with this much paper in this office, we can get it done fast."

Tsunade blinked and thought for a moment. She signaled Shizune to come closer. She whispered in her ear, "That woman is perfect. She can be my office assistant so that I can get my papers done. Don't you think so?"

The black-haired younger woman sweat dropped and muttered back, "T-that is a pretty good idea! You can get more free time!"

"I'm so glad that you're here to understand me, Shizune," The Hokage chuckled and turned to face Izumi. "So are you looking for a job, Izumi?"

"Huh...? A...job?" the redhead gawked at the blonde, mystified.

"Yes, a job. If you want, you can be my office assistant along with Shizune. You do like paperwork, after all."

"I hate getting a job. It makes me exhausted," Izumi included a yawn after that.

"Still, it makes time go by quicker!" Shizune jumped in, wanting to convince the redhead also.

"I'm not sure if that will change my mind. Besides, I'm busy."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow, "Busy...? Why are you busy? You said you're on vacation, right?"

"Yes, I'm busy trying to go to sleep for days so I can get back home to the Sand."

"How about doing paper work to make the days pass by! What the hell is your problem? You're freaking giving me an attitude! I told you to go check up on Kakashi and you refused. I wanted to you to get a job, and you say no again!" Tsunade growled. Shizune cringed at her master's sudden outburst.

Izumi glared at the blonde. "I'm on vacation, I have a life, and I can control my life. Gaara sent me on vacation to take a break. I have my own schedule to do to spend my vacation here. I can decide what I want to do while I'm here. The end."

Izumi and Tsunade ended up in another staring contest. Tsunade glared harder, and so did Izumi. The staring contest continued for ten minutes. Tsunade grumpily huffed. "Forget it. You've changed into a different character. If you're busy, then get yourself busy by going back home to the Sand. Tell your cousin that you are to blame for making me kick you out of the village. If you're going to give me that kind of attitude, I have no choice but to officially not see you around. I had high hopes for you when you were younger, even your parents. I don't know why you changed so much. It's like you're some teenaged woman who got pregnant by someone."

Izumi flinched at the last part. She scowled at the wooden floor. "Maybe..." she spoke up, "maybe it is like I'm a teenager that go banged up by a guy. Women like that usually have their lives ruined."

Shizune and Tsunade stared at her. Izumi continued on, "Y-you compared that to my life. It's just..."

"It's just what...?" Tsunade said, still in angry mode.

Izumi shook her head. "Never mind. I'll just leave the village then..." At that she left the room, with the two women looking at the door the redhead just closed.

"Is she really going to leave the village, Tsunade...?" Shizune pondered out loud.

"I-I hope not. I didn't mean to yell at her. Damn it..." Tsunade groaned and went back to paperwork.

"But you just told her to either leave the village or change her attitude. So you didn't mean it?"

"Shizune...I just wanted her to change. Of course she's welcome in the village. I don't want her mother yelling this and that. You met her mother, Mizuki, haven't you?"

Shizune nodded in reply and the other woman went on, "Her mother is very serious on raising her daughter to a responsible adult. Mizuki gave Izumi many advice, especially on relationships and how to choose her path of life. She's...like a queen trying to teach her little princess manners to help the girl be the next queen in the generation..."

"I've heard so much about her and the divorce with her husband. When people started talking about it, they worried that the alliance between the Leaf and Sand would collide. Wasn't that suppose to happen, my lady?" Shizune asked.

"Yes, it's supposed to happen..."

"But why didn't they...?"

"Our two countries met up in a private meeting after the event. They discussed it further and questioning each other on how we should do the treaty. Sarutobi-sensei was the first to speak up."

"What did the Third Hokage say?"

"To continue the treaty, they shouldn't involve Mizuki and Yuuto for the next plan. Instead they used their daughter. Both countries decided to agree that by keeping the alliance strong, they should allow Izumi to come to either the Sand or the Leaf whenever she wants. That means she can chose to stay here, and not one of our countries will mind on where she goes. It's simple as that."

"Huh?" Shizune gaped at the story her master just said. "That's it? The alliance is just letting Izumi stay in either village? Why did they decide on that?"

"Sarutobi-sensei was unusual for keeping it that way. The rest of the attendees thought that the plan is too simple. However, they had to agree to keep the alliance stable..."

* * *

Izumi walked down the road of the village. The blonde Hokage's words kept repeating in her mind over and over again. Does Tsunade really want her to leave? Izumi wasn't sure of the answer to that. That almost good thing is... That she can finally get out of the busty old woman's sight. She thinks that Tsunade doesn't want her here.

'Maybe I should go see him after all...' she thought. Izumi sighed, thinking of many possibilities that might happen if she does visit Kakashi in the hospital. The Fifth Hokage had told her that Kakashi will be waiting for her to come visit...

The redhead passed by the hospital. She kept her face staring at the huge building, still weighing her options if she should really go see him or not. Izumi stopped and sighed. Then, she turned the other way towards the hospital.

When she entered the building, it was quiet. Except for a few children visiting with their parents, not a single adult did not say a word. Izumi headed to the desk where a nurse was sitting behind it.

The woman, the nurse, looked up to see the redhead waiting for her to speak. "May I help you...?"

"I'm actually here to visit Kakashi Hatake..."

"Oh, is it just a friendly visit?" the nurse handed her a clipboard to sign in with a smile.

The nurse didn't see Izumi's eyebrow twitch a little. _Friendly visit, my butt..._ "Actually, I'm visiting under the Hokage's orders."

"Is that so? Well, you can stay here as long as you like, but visiting hours end at seven."

"Yeah, thanks..." Izumi muttered and paced through the halls. _I won't be staying for a long time. The moment he says hi, I'm surely to leave right away.'_

Izumi remembered the room number Kakashi was in, so it wasn't much of a problem snooping around the hospital visiting door to door if that's the room she's supposed to be visiting. She stopped in front of that very door where the man stayed. Should she knock? Nah...

She opened the door so suddenly that it startled the masked jonin on his bed from reading. When he saw that it was only the redhead, he greeted, "Oh, hello Izumi. How are you?"

Izumi glared at Kakashi for a second and decided to act "nice" for a while, "Hello Kakashi. I'm fine thank you. How are you feeling today? Do you feel like barfing in that stupid mask of yours?"

Kakashi sighed. _She's already starting it._ "No, I don't feel like barfing because that's not why I'm here."

"Well that's too bad because I wanted you to choke on your own throw up," Izumi's pretend smile disappeared and her face turned expressionless.

"Why are you such a bad-mannered woman?"

"Why do you read porn? To learn how to sleep with women?"

_This is harder than I thought it would be'_ Kakashi frowned under his dark blue mask. "I like reading it, but I don't sleep with women. I'm not like that."

Izumi scoffed at his reply. "What a bastard you are. I thought you do play with the ladies. Are you sure you don't sleep with women?"

"Izumi, just stop talking about this."

"Why? Is it because you do sleep more than once with many different women? Or is it because you have something to say to me?"

"Because I want to say something to you, Izumi."

The redhead rolled her green eyes as if to say, "Oh please." Then she cocked an eyebrow at him and asked, "Fine. What are you going to say?"

"That I'm sor "

Kakashi was cut off by the woman he was apologizing to. "You say you're sorry, but I bet you don't even know what the hell you did to me."

The silver-haired ninja was about to object then let it go. "Yeah, you're right. I don't know what I did to you because you wouldn't tell me."

"Figure it out. Twelve years isn't a long time, Kakashi."

"Yes, it is. What made you remember that I did do something to you?" Kakashi asked.

"Just because...! Well it's because you're the one who started it and I was the victim of what you did."

"Then how come I don't remember?"

"I don't know," Izumi replied, "maybe you have memory problems?"

"I remember everything that's happened since I was a child. Maybe... I didn't do anything to you." Kakashi pondered over the events that happened during his lifetime.

"You'll figure it out someday..." Izumi sighed.

"Can't you just tell me now?" Kakashi asked.

The woman shook her head, unsure if she should explain everything to him. She ended up with a no for now. Kakashi stared at her for a while, which made the red-haired woman uneasy. She looked away from his gaze to the wall.

"Izumi, why don't you sit down? You must be tired from coming all the way here."

"I'm not tired from walking. I'm exhausted because Tsunade and I got into an argument."

Kakashi blinked. "You two had an argument? Oh...it's about me wasn't it?"

Izumi glared again at the man, "Yeah, because of you, I'm stuck here trying to get along with you. I was ordered for that because of my stupid temper."

"Sorry that it has to be me..."

"Well, I'm sorry that it has to be you too," she said with sarcasm and rubbed her forehead to prevent anything that might make her snap. Oh, wait, she already did snap.

"Maybe the Hokage was right. We should get along again..." Kakashi grinned under his mask.

"Uh, the Hokage's wrong. We shouldn't get along again."

"Izumi."

"What?"

"I like you."

"..." Izumi stared at Kakashi, wide-eyed. "H-HUH? E-eww!" she stuttered while backing away from his hospital bed, with slight shock in her eyes. "W-w-what is this all of a sudden?" Her light skinned cheeks started to redden, and it wasn't hard for Kakashi to miss that.

Kakashi chuckled lightheartedly, "I'm kidding. I was kidding, Izumi. I knew you'd react that way."

Izumi stomped her right foot on the floor with her hands on her hips, "What was that for? You scared the crap out of me!" She was still blushing at what just happened.

"Wow, did you just stomp your foot? I thought girls do that in movies," Kakashi laughed again at the redhead.

Izumi glared harder at the man. "I-I-I...GAHHH! Damn, why do you have to be so...? Forget it, I'm leaving!" she escaped the room and left Kakashi alone.

The silver-haired man is now puzzled at what just happened. "Wow... She took it seriously..." he just shrugged and continued reading his book.


	6. Chapter 6

A certain fifty-two year old blonde Hokage walked on the streets of the village she swore to protect. Tsunade is on her way to a redhead's apartment, to talk to her like a "mother" and change the unnecessary attitude she just had two days ago. The Hokage decided to apologize to her first... It's already noon, and Tsunade hoped that Izumi already had her lunch.

As she passed by, she is greeted by the villages of the Leaf in a very polite manner. Of course, Tsunade replied back to every comment a person says to her. She then stared up to the apartment building populated by many shinobi in the village. The blonde finally reached the apartment door that she was headed. She knocked on the door several times.

Izumi didn't seem to reply or heard the knock. After more raps on the door, Tsunade had enough. She somehow had a feeling that this might happen, so she brought along a spare key for this door. The door unlocked with a click and Tsunade went in. It was quiet... Like no one is inside. The Hokage found some furniture that looked brand new. She headed towards Izumi's bedroom and opened the door.

There, the redhead slept on her comfortable bed with a very nice mattress. Her entire body was covered with the thick bed blanket. Izumi is still sleeping...at noon. Tsunade sighed. This is very unlike Izumi. When she was just a teenager, she woke up very early every single day. Izumi would do some warm ups in the training grounds before meeting up with her friends.

However, now, there she is...still sleeping like a child. _It's amazing how this woman changed over the years since her parents' divorce. Many of her personality changed, and I wonder why,_ Tsunade thought with a tired sigh. She sat down next to the redhead's bed and waited. She examined Izumi's face. The face looked weary...or sick.

Tsunade placed a hand on Izumi's forehead. Good, she's not sick since her body temperature is normal. Izumi's fingers twitched and started to mumble. Is she sleep talking? Tsunade listened to her words.

"Damn you...Kakashi...you're such...a...sick...pervert. The hell...stop stalking...me. Oh...my...Jiraiya get the...heck out...of my way...Stupid old man...don't...get...any closer...I told you...to stay away..."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow at her sleep talk. 'Heh, she's dreaming about the perverts she named a few days ago,

"WHAT THE HELL, JIRAIYA! YOU SICK PERV GET AWAY FROM ME!" Izumi yelled out of the blue, making the Hokage jump and hope that no one outside heard that.

Izumi's eyes went wide open and sit up on her bed in panic. "Oh, just a dream..." she went back to her bed lying down facing the Hokage. It wasn't until she realized that the blonde was there. "OH MY FREAKIN GOSH!"

"Damn, stop yelling!" Tsunade growled.

"WHY ARE YOU HERE?"

"BECAUSE I NEED TO TALK TO YOU!"

"Can it wait? I need to sleep. I woke up so early..."

Tsunade glared at the redhead. "For your information, it's already noon!"

"It is?" Izumi took a peek at her clock and said, "Well, whatever, I need to snooze."

"No. We need to converse now," Tsunade demanded, emphasizing 'now'.

"Fine, just tell me what you're going to say..." the lethargic redhead yawned and closed her eyes.

"No, I need you wide awake. Your mother taught you respect, did she not?"

Izumi shrugged and said in a bored tone, "Don't know, and can't remember."

Tsunade sighed and decided to let that go. "Well, I'm not here to talk about respect. I just need you to listen and talk," she cleared her throat before saying more, "Kakashi told me that you came to visit the other day. He said you left, furious. Did something happen?"

"No."

"No?"

"Yeah."

"Yes?"

"No."

"Yes or no?" Tsunade asked, trying to hold down her temper.

Izumi groaned. She didn't have time for this, "No! Nothing happened!"

"Izumi, I'm your mother's close companion, and I've been helping her take care of her. I also came up of the name Izumi for your parents. So technically, I'm like your godmother or something. You do realize that aside from your mom, you can tell me anything."

"..."

Tsunade frowned when she didn't get a response. Then, she heard a light snore coming from under the thick blanket. A vein popped out of the blonde's forehead. "Izumi, what do you think you're doing?"

"Geez, you older people are so loud. You can't even let a person sleep," said the woman's voice from the bed.

"Izumi, tell me, what did you do at the hospital?"

"Hmm...? Oh, nothing much. I just barged in, insulted him a little, he said something and then I left. The freaking end."

Tsunade's eyebrows rose, "He said something? What did he say exactly?"

Another irritated sigh came out from the redhead. "Kakashi said that he likes me. Then he said he was only kidding."

It immediately dawned on the Hokage as to why Izumi left irritated. "Is that why you left? He also said that you stomped your foot." she chuckled.

Izumi uncovered herself from the blanket, glaring at the blonde. "Why do you believe to what that idiot says?"

"Kakashi doesn't lie to me, except when he is tardy."

The red-haired woman stretched her arms and yawned again. "Whatever... And I still don't like him, just to tell you. I was only livid because out of the blue he just said that he likes me. It got awkward..."

"Right..." Tsunade said with a smirk.

"See, you don't believe me. Why bother telling you all this?" Izumi stood up from her bed and headed towards her kitchen. Tsunade followed. She watched her friend's daughter take a cup of instant ramen from the kitchen drawers.

"Instant ramen for breakfast?" Tsunade asked, skeptical.

"It's for brunch. You said it's already noon, right? So it's brunch." Izumi sat down by the table across from the fifty-one year old female Sannin. "So...you were talking about Kakashi..."

"Ah, yes, actually my main question is: why did you two separate?"

Izumi dropped a bunch of noodles from her fork back to the cup. She gawked at Tsunade. "Why we broke up?" she received a nod in reply. Izumi shrugged, "I don't know. I just felt like it...?"

"You don't just break up with someone just because you felt like doing so," said the blonde. She was never an expert in being in relationships, except at the time when Dan, her lover, was still alive. His death was a mark of her life to never get in a relationship ever again.

Izumi, thinking up for a false reason why she and Kakashi separated, watched her godmother wonder about a few little things. "Well...after dating for a few years, I realized that I don't need some involvement with another person. I wasn't ready to get a boyfriend yet, father said to me."

"Hey, I received a letter from your mom this morning. She wants you to tell me everything," Tsunade took out a piece of paper with a fancy writing that Izumi recognized. She snatched the letter quickly so the Hokage doesn't put it back in her pocket.

"M-mother sent YOU a letter?" the redhead screeched, her green eyes scanning the writing of her parent.

_'Dear Tsunade,_

_It's been a while, hasn't it? Surely you're surprised that my daughter finally appeared in the Hidden Leaf. Well, I'm going to inform you about some difficulties that Izumi has experienced ever since she left the village. Listen, if she says about my divorce with my ex-husband was all her fault; please tell her that it wasn't. Anyway, back to her difficulties, my daughter went through a depression. Yes, it surprised me as well, and I realized the cause of it. I don't want to write twenty pages about what's happened to her, so I was thinking if you discuss it with her, maybe she will tell you the details. If Izumi refuses, then I demand that I will send her two most important people to the Leaf. Thank you very much and I hope that Izumi will open up to you and the rest of the people she was once close with. Please write back to me, Tsunade._

_Sincerely,  
Mizuki  
_  
"'If Izumi refuses, then I demand that I will send her two most important people to the Leaf?' What the heck is my mother thinking?" Izumi yelled from the top her lungs.

"That is why there is the need to tell me what you've been going through. What do you say, Izumi?" Tsunade said, giving her an encouraging smile. The younger woman sitting across from her began thinking about it.

"I-I...Fine, I'll tell you anything!" Izumi replied, sighing and raising her hands in surrender. As long as she does some talk time with the Fifth Hokage, then those two people won't come to the village. "What do you want to hear about?"

The blonde's eyes flickered to the letter written by her companion. "How about this depression your mother mentioned in the letter?"

"Depression, right," Izumi's eyes, too, lay on her mother's paper. She collected her thoughts before starting. "It all started one month after leaving the Hidden Leaf..."

* * *

A patient in the hospital sighed, putting down his beloved book. "What do I do now?"

It's late afternoon now, and Kakashi rested his head on the soft pillow. He didn't want to be here, but not being able to move on his own made him stay in the hospital. His mind then settled on Izumi.

Kakashi has been thinking about that redhead for quite some time now and he does not know why. Sighing, he began wondering why Izumi came back. She didn't want to see him anymore, so what made her come to the village? That puzzled the silver-haired man.

In addition, he's been comparing the current Izumi and the twelve years ago Izumi. The current Izumi has sort of a short-temper, while the past Izumi is calm and patient. The current Izumi is somewhat of a sick-minded woman and the twelve-years ago Izumi is way too innocent. Both Izumis are loud when around people. Smiling, Kakashi immediately recognized the moment he met up with her again that she is still the same loud-mouthed girl like when she was young. Ah, yes, memories... Kakashi missed the memories.

He still remembered the time when he confesses his feelings to the redhead. He was the one to speak up first, which was an unusual thing he would do. Of course, how they got together was when Kakashi said the one and only statement, "I like you".

At first, Izumi didn't understand what he meant by that three-word sentence. Kakashi didn't blame her for not knowing, since the redhead's parents were out there, very protective of their daughter and not having any boy to get close to her.

Izumi may be loud, but for all of her young years, she was clueless about relationships.

* * *

_A young Kakashi was waiting for another young girl his age. He was muttering of how he should work this out. He's sixteen, but he has no idea on how this should work out._

_"KAKASHIIII!" a feminine voice yelled from behind him. Turning around, Kakashi knew it was her._

_"Izumi, you're finally here."_

_"Kakashi, it's unusual for you to come early!" Izumi replied, giggling. She'd experience all of Kakashi's coming-late-and-make-up-a-lame-excuse behavior. Is it to remember Obito?_

_Frowning under his mask, Kakashi responded, "I can be late or early when I want to. However, since I'm meeting with you, I want to come here a little early."_

_"You'd come early just for me?" Kakashi's female companion asked, a little puzzled._

_He nodded and continued, "Anyway..." Kakashi was taking a deep breath and nervous. 'Keep your cool, Kakashi'. "Do you like anyone in particular?"_

_This confused Izumi even more. Does she like anyone? Oh! He meant... "Yep! I like all my friends including you Kakashi! I never dislike a single person I meet. I like everyone here," Izumi said, smiling her cute smile._

_Kakashi then scratched the back of his head. Of course, Izumi misunderstood. Sighing, he said, "N-no, I mean do you have an interest in a boy?"_

_"Hmmm..."_

_"...?" Kakashi waited for a reply._

_"What do you mean do I have an interest in a boy? I'm interested in knowing more of my friends." Now, Izumi let out a confused smile._

_'This is harder than I thought it would be,' Kakashi thought, placing his hand under his chin. "Izumi."_

_"Hmm? What is it?"_

_"I like you."_

_It was silent for a while. Kakashi was only looking away nervously while Izumi just kept her innocent face. Finally, she spoke, "I like you too, Kakashi! You're my best friend! I'm glad you finally felt the spark in our friendship!"_

_"N-no, that's not what I meant at all!" Kakashi shouted (a strange thing for him to do at this time), waving his hands in the air, irritated._

_Izumi looked hurt. "You mean I'm not your friend?"_

_"You think of me as just comrades, but I'm thinking of you as more than that, Izumi."_

_"More than what, Kakashi?"_

_"You know how your parents love each other so much?" Kakashi questioned and received a nod from the girl. "That's how I feel about you."_

_Widening her eyes, Izumi asked, "Y-you want to marry me? I'm only sixteen! I can't get married at this age. My parents told me that."_

_"No, I'm not talking about marriage! I meant that I like you the way your parents like each other."_

_"O-oh...uh, okay? So you like me...and you think of me as your wife?" Clearly, she still wasn't getting it._

_"Have you heard of the word 'girlfriend'?"_

_"Huh? Oh, yeah! But what does this have to do with anything we're talking about?"_

_"Izumi, do you know what dating means?"_

_The redhead scowled. Who did Kakashi think she is? Of course she knows what dating means! "Yes, I know what dating is. It's like when two people hang out in a specific place."_

_"Yes," Kakashi sighed. 'She finally got one part right.' "You're right, but dating is for ONE boy and ONE girl spending their time together as loved ones and have a great time."_

_"I'm still not getting what this has anything to do with you thinking of me as your wife," she asked, still not getting it._

_"No, Izumi. You know when you see a boy and a girl that like each other, some people refer to them as a couple?"_

_"Yes, what of it?"_

_"I really, really, really like you, Izumi. Will you be my girlfriend?" Kakashi felt stupid saying those words. Still, she has to be the one that he has feelings for._

_Izumi kept her innocent, blank face. Then, smiling, she replied, "Okay! Let me tell my parents!"_

_"H-huh?"_

_"We're getting married aren't we? So when is the wedding?"_

_How can a girl called a genius be so clueless and dumb about this kind of topic? "Izumi, I told you, I wasn't talking about marriage!"_

_"Oh? Oh, that's right you said something about dating and girlfriend and couple," pondered the red-haired teenager. "So what do those three things add up to anyway?"_

_Kakashi groaned. Intelligent girl, and clueless all the way. "They add up to how your mother and father really fell in love. They have deep feelings for each other."_

_"Oh, see? They add up to marriage."_

_"NO! Let me finish!" Izumi raised an eyebrow at his outburst._

_Kakashi collected his thoughts to explain everything. "Anyway, remember you had feelings for Obito?"_

_Izumi stared at him in slight horror. "WHAT? HOW DID YOU KNOW I LIKED HIM?"_

_"Long story, but forget about that," Kakashi waved his hand to put aside that subject. "So you had some feelings for him. What did you think of him?"_

_"Well..." Izumi slowly let the word out. "He was always there for me, helping me out when I need it. Obito is, uh, good-looking I guess? There's probably more, but I'm not really sure if that's that same thing of what you're saying."_

_"That's how I feel when I'm around you. Do you sort of get it?" Kakashi asked, praying for her to say yes._

_"Oh, you have feelings for me, Kakashi?" Izumi did her well-known laugh. "Why didn't you just say so?"_

_"That's because you were only focused on the wedding and marriage part. It wasn't my fault." Kakashi crossed his arms across his chest._

_"Hmmm...Now that you mention it, I had this weird feeling when we talk. What do you think it is, Kakashi?"_

_"I-I...I guess you like me too?" Kakashi stammered and blushed under his mask._

_"Wow, really? I guess finding someone to love happens..." Izumi puffed her cheeks._

_"What's up, Izumi?"_

_"Let's tell my parents that we're together now!"_

_Kakashi let out another sigh. "Alright, but make sure they don't get me. Your dad is really protective of you."_

_"Nah, don't worry about it! Father will be delighted that I found someone to be with!"_

_

* * *

_

Kakashi chuckled at the memory. He wished that it will happen again. There's Izumi, though, that finally changed over the years. With New Izumi, he needs to think of a new plan to get her to open up. Otherwise, she'll just keep babbling insults at him.

His room door suddenly opened, showing the redhead Kakashi's been thinking about. It was then he realized that this person is different. Why is Izumi smiling? It didn't look like she'll be yelling at him again.

"Good afternoon, Kakashi! How is your day going? I'm sorry that I barged in like that," that Izumi reminded him of that redhead when they were younger. Is he just imagining things? What happened to the cruel, er, mean Izumi?

Kakashi is still confused on what is going on, but replied, "That's quite alright. I'm fine, thank you though I ran out of books to read."

'Good, then I don't have to deal with those stupid book,' Izumi thought, still showing her fake smile that she thinks no one will see through it. "I see. I'm sorry to hear that. Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Just one thing: food."

Izumi giggled and shook her head. "I understand that you're parched, but you have to wait a little longer to get to liquid diet. I've got some updates from Lady Hokage on your evaluation today. I'll be watching over you until you get better."

Kakashi's head slowly went up and down. He's really curious on what's going on right now. Did the Hokage force the redhead to be like this? Maybe it's best if he doesn't ask her now or later. "So you're like my nurse."

"That's right. I hope that I visiting you more often won't be a nuisance. I'll try not to come here every hour."

"No, no," the masked jonin quickly said. Of course she's welcome anytime. Maybe...this is the Hokage's plan to control Izumi's temper. "You can come anytime you want."

"Anyway..." Izumi started, thinking of what to do that is considered helpful. Her godmother made her do all this. That stupid talk time was the only thing that made her all the way here.

* * *

_"Izumi, I'm truly sorry for what's happened to you several years ago. You were frustrated, and maybe you can fix that."_

_"Gah, Tsunade, I'm fine for pete's sake. I'm over that depression," Izumi groaned and put her head down on the dining table._

_"You've become short-tempered. I'm sure your friends don't want you to change your temper. All you need to do is calm down when you're around Kakashi," Tsunade suggested._

_"WHY DO I HAVE TO CALM DOWN IN FRONT OF HIM?" Izumi complained while slapping her hands on the table. "Can't I just use someone else, NOT HIM?"_

_The Fifth Hokage moved her head from left to right. "I'm afraid that won't work. It's always Kakashi you're always upset about. That is why you need to act nice and polite. Oh, and show some manners towards him."_

_"Show some manners to him? I'm older than him! Why do I need to show some manners?"_

_"That's the first thing you should do." Izumi didn't look convinced at the blonde's response. Tsunade sighed, "Just try it, Izumi. You'll be his nurse until he gets out of the hospital. Once he is free to leave, then you can report back to me and tell me the results."_

_

* * *

_

"Is there a problem with anything during your stay in the hospital?" the red-haired woman asked the patient.

Kakashi thought for a moment. "I dont think there is. Well, now that you mention it, there are times when the hospital beds get uncomfortable and they often give me back pain. It's not really big a deal."

"When did you get the back pains?"

"I guess it was last night and two nights before."

Izumi then asked, "Would you like me to massage your back? Maybe I'll do it from time to time so the pain will go away."

"If you don't mind, then yes I'll allow you to do it..."

She grinned. Kakashi remembered that expression on her face. The redhead looked exactly the same as twelve years ago. Why is she still young? Izumi clapped her hands and said, "Great! I can start now if you'd like. Just lay face down and I can give you a massage." 'And maybe crush your bones with my bare hands...'

"Would it be okay if I just sit down? Lying face down is really my thing."

"Uh..." 'What's the problem with lying face down?' "Sure, if that's what you're comfortable with, then sitting down might be better for you." Kakashi sat up from his bed. Izumi hesitantly took a seat behind him on the bed. "If I'm going a little too hard, let me know okay?"

"Right."


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey! I finally updated! Anyway, Happy New Year! I'm totally excited for what's going to happen this year, so I have to sit back and find out. I have this new little, I mean, longer chapter for all of you. I worked on it on my iPod Touch. When I saved it on my email paste it on Microsoft Word, it was like 18 pages long (excluding the part where I babble and such). I didn't think it would be that much (to me). Sooo, I hope you like it.**

**I totally forgot about the disclaimer for the last three chapters I put up a few weeks ago (got lazy -_-). Here it is.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did own Naruto, I wouldn't update a new manga every week because it's hard to think of what's going to happen next in the story.**

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* * *

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"Izumi."

"Yes, what is it, Kakashi?"

"I'm glad you're here to help me, but why are you so fastidious all of a sudden?" Kakashi's inquisitiveness finally led to a questioning.

Izumi's face reddened a bit and turned away. "I-it's because I hadn't been nicer to you for the first few days. I had to manage my rage when I'm around you."

"So you're only short-tempered when you're with me?"

The woman nodded, turning back to face the jonin. "That's what it seems to look like. I don't know why though...but I promised the Hokage to calm myself down for a week when I'm with you."

"So she's the one who suggested that you'll be my nurse until I'm out of the hospital?"

_Stop asking me these stupid questions already_, Izumi complained in her mind. "Yes, that's right."

"Oh, okay then."

It was hushed after that. The two always would cross the silence after talking about a topic. Kakashi began have a second look at his favorite book, while Izumi read her book. 'The Last Song' was the title the silver-haired saw on the front cover. The woman usually is seen reading that book. "So, what kind of book are you reading there?"

Izumi lowered her book and met the Kakashi's gray or black eyes with her own emerald ones. "Oh this? It's called 'The Last Song'. It's actually a romance book."

"Is it interesting to read?"

The redhead smiled warmly at the jonin and replied, "Yes, it's a very great book."

Kakashi couldn't help but grin back under his dark blue mask. "I see. Do you mind telling me the plot?"

"I don't mind a bit. I barely see people reading this," Izumi finally closed her eyes with her smile. She absorbed all the chapters in her book to explain a brief summary of it. "Well, there's this teenage girl, about seventeen, that is mutinous ever since her parents divorced. Erika, the girl, believed that it was her father who started having an affair that led to the disconnection of her parents. So this story actually began with Erika and her mother having a little argument on why she and her brother Keisuke have to go visit their father for the entire summer at the beachside."

"Erika ignored her father by going to a carnival close to where they live. She happened to stop by at a volleyball game. One of the volleyball players ran full speed for the ball not seeing Erika just standing there. He eventually crashed into her, spilling soda all over her shirt."

"Furious, Erika headed somewhere to clean up the shirt mess. She meets this girl who looks rebellious just like her. Her name was Dahlia, and Erika starting hanging out with her for the day. She became fully aware that her father Hikaru and Keisuke was looking around for her. Dahlia decided to help her a little, and it worked but it couldn't hold it longer."

"Erika finally went face to face with the volleyball player that spilled her soda. His name was Daisuke, and they started a bond as they became more contented around each other. It led to love, of course," Izumi's eyes went back to meet Kakashi's. "That's the main part of it I guess. I think I didn't summarize it well enough. Normally, when people ask what the plot of the book I'm reading, I tell them to go get it for themselves and read."

"That's fine. I understood most of it. Maybe...I'll read that..." Kakashi slowly said, unsure since the only book he's been reading for most of his life is the Icha Icha series.

"It would be pleasant if you read something else, though," the redhead said. Maybe she'll start convincing him to read a different book.

"I'll think about it. Thank you for telling me the story."

"Will you be asking me the plot if I read another book?" Izumi asked.

"Maybe I will," answered Kakashi.

"Kakashi?"

"Hmm?"

"A-are you still wondering the mistake you've done that made me leave this village?"

Kakashi's right eye blinked several times. He had completely forgotten that, and now she brought it up. This probably is the time to ask her. "What did I even do?"

Izumi tried not to scowl, but in her head she repeated, 'Keep your cool, Izumi'. "I...well, actually...I'm not really sure what happened. Still, I knew that I have to blame you for it."

"You're not sure what happened?" Kakashi asked, confused.

"Not really sure...I think it has something to do the night before I had to leave," Izumi began thinking of the past events of what happened.

"The...night...before?" What happened that night? He can barely remember it. They started doing some paperwork, helping the Hokage categorize the new genins into teams at his house After that..he couldn't remember.

The woman nodded. "That night has to be the one causing the problem. One month since I left the Leaf, I had my preーI... I mean problem."

"Problem?" Kakashi repeated the last word she said. He had this feeling that he was right about something.

"Y-yes, problem. After one month, something happened is all...I don't want to talk about it. Maybe...maybe someday...I'll tell you about it," Izumi blushed and was looking down at her book.

"You have to tell me sometime. Maybe I can do something about it."

"I-I p-promise. I promise I won't forget, Kakashi."

The masked man nodded in approval. He rubbed his shoulders ad winced a little. His back hurts a little... Izumi happened to be watching his actions and grew worried. "Does your back hurt again?"

"Yeah, but it's only a little. Don't worry about it, it'll get better soon," Kakashi replied, still holding onto his shoulders.

'Is he just being stubborn?' Izumi stood up from her chair and her hands held his shoulders. "I'll give you a massage! Here, just sit still. No, I mean, sit down and loosen up a bit. There, just like that." For some reason, she began to giggle.

Kakashi can feel Izumi's warm hands on his back. The same skin texture he always felt every time she gives him a massage.

Izumi leaned in next to him, "Do you feel better?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine now. Thanks, you're good at this," Kakashi complimented her.

"I massage my mother's back since her, too, gets back pains," Izumi grinned, rubbing her neck.

"How's your mother by the way?"

"The same as always. Very strict, and she wants me to be responsible. Sometimes she takes it...a little too far since I'm an adult now. Yet, she still wants me to study like I still go to the Academy," she sighed and chuckled when she remembered her mother's usual self.

"That's what I expect from a mom like her, apart from the where she still wants you to study," Kakashi also laughed along with her. Then he got a little serious again, "And you heard about your father...?"

"He's not dead."

"Huh?"

"People believe that he's dead, but I doubt that. One of my goals is finding him," the redhead gave out a gloomy smile, "I know he's still out there. That what I believe in."

"Good luck with that," Kakashi was a little shocked to hear this from Izumi. "If you need help, you know you can ask me."

"Thank you very much. I really appreciate it." Izumi clasped her hands together and smiled happily again. "Oh, you probably don't know all of my family members."

"What are you talking about?"

"I can tell that everyone here thinks that I'm the only child of Yuuto and Mizuki Takahashi."

_But isn't she? _"You are the only child..." Kakashi never heard anything of other relatives or siblings Izumi has.

"I have a brother and sister. So I'm not the only child," Izumi said, still keeping her grin.

"I'm not sure I get it. You told me, Obito, Rin and everybody else that you're the only child. So you kept it a secret?"

The redhead's smile shrank and replied, "It's been a secret since I was four. My parents had my uncle and aunt to look after them."

"Wait, so your family never mentioned this to anyone else?" Kakashi stared at her, bewildered.

"My mother told Aunty Tsunade. Actually, the three Sannins know. My cousins already know because of my aunt's husband. I told Rin and Obito, and they promised to never bring it up to you or my parents. Minato-sensei knew as well, but he had to be quiet about it..."

"Minato-sensei? He also knows about it? My very own team knows but me?" Kakashi frowned. "How come you didn't tell me?"

"I have my reasons. Besides, I'm not allowed to mention it to too many people."

"What about your team? Does Daisuke-sensei knows?"

Izumi sighed. So many questions to answer. "Yes, I only told Daisuke-sensei. The other two in my team didn't know."

Kakashi just sat there, staring at the woman. Out of all people he knew, he's the only one that was kept away from the secret. "How come you didn't tell me?" he repeated.

"I...don't really know why...," she puffed her cheeks. "You know now, so no more secrets from now on, right?"

"I guess," Kakashi shrugged.

Izumi sat back down on her chair next to the hospital bed. She sighed, exhausted for some reason. When will one week be finally over? It's only been three days since she was told to help Kakashi. The days felt like they've gotten longer everyday, and it makes her impatient to wait. "So..." she heard a male voice, snapping her out of her thoughts. It was Kakashi who spoke. "Do you mind telling me about your siblings?"

"Huh? Why?"

"I'd like to get to know more of them, since this is the first time you mentioned this to me."

Her smile returned. "Of course. What do you want to know?"

"Well, how come they didn't live with you when you and your parents are here?"

"I think you're wondering about the very start of it," Izumi's head lowered to look at her book on her lap. "You see, my older twin siblings, Yuuki and Yumi, were the first born of my parents. They are only two years older than I am. Before I entered the Academy at age four, my parents felt that they couldn't take care of all of us. I don't know why, since three kids isn't much in the family. They sent my siblings away, somewhere safe, and asked the Hokage to not tell anyone about my brother and sister. To be honest, I didn't have a clue on what's the big deal of hiding Yuuki and Yumi away from everything."

"Where do they settle in now?"

"My father's clan's village. Right now, they are shinobi and farmer right now."

Kakashi never had an idea that the Takahashi are also farmers. Izumi finds the confusion on his face and replied to his thoughts. "Yes, my father came from a clan that are strong and geniuses. Each house owns a ranch and farm. They are highly skilled. The clan grows many things on the farm that they became wealthy. Not really wealthy as my mother though, but you know what I mean."

"Oh, I see," Kakashi nodded and moved on, "Anyway, back to your siblings. Do you visit them often?"

"Of course! You know, in our younger days, when I announce that my parents and I will be going on a vacation, that means I'm off to see Yuuki and Yumi," Izumi paused for a moment, then said, "Well, you didn't know that but our friends did."

"Very funny," the masked man rolled his eyes. "So Yuuki and Yumi...what do they look like?"

"Hmmm...They both have the same green eyes like me inherited from my mother. They also have blonde hair they got from my mom. Yuuki is much of a loudmouthed and impatient guy; I don't know where he gets that. Yumi is also loud, but unlike Yuuki, she enjoys being patient since Yuuki's impatient personality results into a lecture by my father's siblings."

Kakashi sighed, making the redhead wonder what's wrong with him. "Do I ever get to see them?"

"They are debating against one another if they should or shouldn't come visit the Hidden Leaf," Izumi smiled, showing her white teeth. "If my siblings are planning to visit, then they will write me a letter to notify me. I'll tell you when it comes."

"That's great. You got me curious and interested on knowing more of them," the masked Kakashi's head slowly made a nod.

"That's exactly what Rin said to me," te red-haired female giggled. "Although it's a sad thought that our friends didn't get to meet them."

"It is indeed a sad thought."

They started another time of silence again. Izumi continued to read her novel. A collective of thoughts ran across her mind. Like...how did she immediately turned so nice toward Kakashi when it's only been a few days since she started. Another thing, when will her siblings come? She paid a visit to the farm a year ago. Yuuki and Yumi were doing fine the last time she saw them.

"By the way, Yamato, Naruto, Sakura, and Sai are going to visit," Kakashi informed the redhead.

Izumi raised an eyebrow and said, "Yamato, Naruto, who and who?"

"Oh, you didn't meet the other two members of my team yet," Kakashi talked while reading his favorite book. "Sakura is the only kunoichi in Team Kakashi. She's a medical ninja trained under the Fifth Hokage. You can notice her in an instant with her pink hair." Izumi almost let out a snort. Pink is her least favorite color, but who knows? Maybe this Sakura girl is okay since Tsunade is her teacher. "Sai is the new member of my team. I haven't officially met him in person, but Lady Tsunade's got Yamato to spy on the boy."

"Spy...? Why is that?"

"Unfortunately, Sai was sent by Danzo, the leader of the Foundation."

"...Huh? That old geezer?" Izumi's eyebrows pulled into a frown under her bangs. "Why did he send a member of that group to be on your team?"

"I don't know," the silver-haired jonin slowly let the words out. "Yamato might be able to tell us."

"Right," Izumi nodded. Then her curiosity of the pink-haired girl Kakashi mentioned led her to ask. "So, this Sakura girl...what is she like?"

"Hmm? Why are you asking me?" Kakashi tilted his head a little.

"I-I'm just asking! So, answer my question!"

"Okay..." the man is still a little mystified at her question, but decided to answer anyway."Sakura Haruno...she's smart, has a temper, and super strength like Tsunade."

"What?"

Kakashi sighed and repeated his reply again, with more description this time. "Sakura has the brains, but not much though. A single little mistake Naruto makes ticks her off and ends up beating him up. Jiraiya-sama mentioned that Tsunade-sama created a second Tsunade there."

"Oh..." Izumi went back to reading her literature. She put it back down again when something puzzled her and asked Kakashi, "You said that this Sai person is the new member of the team. What happened to the old member?"

"The old member you're talking about is Sasuke Uchiha."

"An Uchiha?" Izumi finally let out the snort she kept several minutes ago.

"Yes, and don't liberally mention the name to Naruto and Sakura. That name Sasuke is taboo," Kakashi said.

"And why would that be?"

"Sasuke left the village two and a half years ago to join Orochimaru."

"To join that idiot of a snake? Why?" Izumi remembered that snake-like Sannin. Her parents were not in good terms with the man. When she was only seven years old, she remembers Orochimaru talking to her and how Yuuto pulled her away from the likes of him. Her younger self didn't quite comprehend why her mother and father wanted her to stay away. Now she knew.

"Remember the Uchiha clan massacre?" Kakashi received a nod from Izumi. "Itachi, Sasuke's older brother, wiped out the entire clan, and left his own little brother alive. Sasuke wanted to avenge his clan by going after Itachi. He decided to seek power from Orochimaru. Naruto tried to prevent him from doing such thing. Of course, he failed since we have a new member now. For the past years, Naruto left with Jiraiya to train."

"Wow, now that's sort of stupid," Izumi puffed her cheeks, "about Sasuke going to Orochimaru, I mean."

"Like I said, don't say 'Sasuke' in front of Naruto and Sakura."

"Uh-huh, right," she rolled her emerald eyes. She then checked her watch and stood up from her wooden chair. Kakashi gave her a "what's up" look and Izumi replied, "I'll be right back. I just need to go somewhere." He nodded in response and she left the room, closing the door behind her.

Izumi strolled through the silent hallway of the building alone. It was then she spotted a familiar male brunette walking towards her direction. Could it be?

"It's nice to see you again, Izumi," Yamato greeted her first. The two adults stop in front of each other.

"Hello, Tenzo," Izumi gave him a warm smile as part of the greeting.

The Wood-type user sighed and reminded her, "Please refrain from calling me Tenzo. I am known as Yamato for now."

Izumi cocked an eyebrow and waved her two hands. "Okay, 'Yamato'."

He gave out a chuckle, "Thank you. Now, considering that you came out from this part of the hospital means that you visited Kakashi-senpai."

"Yeah? Do you have a problem with it?" Izumi folded her arms across her chest and huffed.

"Actually, no," Yamato continued to cackle and kept his grin, "Are you two getting along well?"

The redhead's shoulders and raised and went back down. A shrug. "I guess, we're getting along fine. The Hokage said I have to be his nurse until he gets out of the hospital. It's the only way to control my temper."

Yamato tried to hold back another laugh but failed. Izumi stared at him in less disbelief. He stopped after seeing the redhead's expression. "S-sorry...I guess now that you've kept your cool means your temper is improving?"

"I think so..." Izumi smiled again at the brunette. "Hey, you're here to tell Kakashi what happened during Team Kakashi's mission, correct?"

"Hmm? Oh yes, that's right."

"I'll walk with you on the way, Yamato," her eyes closed, curving upward, to go along with the grin she had on her face.

"Weren't you just heading off somewhere?" Yamato scratched the back of his neck, a little puzzled.

"Huh? What? Me? Heading off somewhere? Nah! Here, let's walk together!" Izumi ran to get behind the man and pushed him lightly with her hands on his shoulder blades. "Onward!"

"Alright, just quit pushing me!" 'More like pushing me instead of walking me to Kakashi,' Yamato sighed. Izumi didn't listen to what Yamato was saying. She kept on pushing him towards Kakashi's room. They made a halt in front of the door. "Here we are!"

"Okay, so let's just knock on the door andー"

"Kakashi! Yamato is here!" the red-haired woman barged in the room before the Wood-type user can finish his sentence.

"ーwait for senpai to speak up and let us in." the brunette sighed at the the woman. What happened to her?

"Oh, hello, Tenzo." Kakashi nodded towards his direction and Yamato entered the room.

"Hello, senpai. How are you feeling now?"

"I'm fine, thank you. I'll be out of here soon. Tomorrow, probably," the masked jonin replied, his eyes still scanning the text in his book.

"T-tomorrow...?" Izumi blinked several times to make sure she heard it right.

"That's right. Your job as my nurse is coming to an end," she received a grin from the silver-haired man.

"Gah, finally! I'm sick of doing this nurse thing. I have to talk to Tsunade now then," Izumi pumped her fist in the air and smiled happily. She sprinted to the door and looked back to the two men in the room. "See you later!" Then, she left.

Kakashi and Yamato just gawked at the door the redhead just closed. The brunette turned to face his friend, "So, since she wanted to stop being your nurse so bad means that it didn't turn out well." 'And I thought it went well...'

"No, just the opposite," the son of the White Fang answered.

"The opposite?"

"For the past few days, she's been polite and showed kindness to me. I guess that was just an act."

Yamato chuckled, "Don't worry, senpai. She'll get along with you someday."

"That won't be easy, though. Just because she's been keeping her temper in control doesn't mean she lost all of it. It's going to take a while," Kakashi turned to stare at the window. Then, he said, "So what happened during the mission?"

"Oh, right. I'll explain everything."

* * *

Izumi slammed her hands on the wooden desk of the Fifth Hokage. "WHAT? What do you mean you're extending my time with KakaーHIM?" She just couldn't believe it . After one hundred "please" to her godmother, Tsunade spoke up to finally declare that the redhead needs more time with the man.

The woman in her fifties cleared her throat, "You need to control yourself, Izumi. Spending more time with Kakashi will definitely help your temper cool down."

The redhead's eyebrow twitched in exasperation. Now this busty old woman is the one who is ticking her off. "You said until Kakashi gets out of the freaking hospital! If you're going to change the plan, at least talk to me about it first!"

"I would have guessed that you'd refused to do it anyway," Tsunade replied through her clenched teeth. Why does her goddaughter have to be so damn aggravating? Screw this, Mizuki.

"Why the hell are you even doing this?" Izumi spat, her hands still resting stiffly on the desk filled with paperwork. "Okay, I know it's trying to improve my personality and all, but you can't just freaking change everything just because you want to! So stop forcing me toー"

"You're pointing your finger at me for doing this," Tsunade said, cutting her off. "The part where you need to spend your time with Kakashi wasn't me. If you're going to blame someone for this, go to your mother. She thought of this plan."

It was quiet after that. Izumi absorbed the words the Hokage just said. Her eyebrow twitched again under her red bangs. "M-MOM!" she screeched. "She sent you a letter, didn't she? Where is it?"

"Yes, she did write me a letter," Tsunade glared at the daughter of her companion, "and I am not going to show it to you."

"WHAT? Why? My mother told you not to show the letter to me. Is that why?"

"W-well," the blonde started, "Mizuki specifically said that you need more time with Kakashi before she sends those two people she mentioned in the first letter."

Izumi gave the blonde a "WTF" expression. Why would her momーher biological motherーsend them to the Hidden Leaf? This is actually the second time the redhead is furious at her parent.

Tsunade leaned back on her chair and asked, "By the way, who are these two people your mom mentioned?"

The redhead shook her head back and forth. "N-nothing, I mean NOONE in particular."

"I told you, Izumi. You can tell me anything," the blonde grinned at the younger woman.

Izumi huffed and her hand rested on the table to make her lean. She showed the Hokage a pinky on her hand. She said, "Promise not to tell a soul?"

"What?"

"Just promise!"

Tsunade sighed and linked pinkies with the redhead. "Okay, I pinky promised. Now what is it?"

Izumi stood up and walked next to the Fifth Hokage. She muttered something in her ear. The blonde's light brown eyes widened, her mouth gaping open a little. "Izumi...what is the meaning of this?"

"I don't know how!" Izumi complained.

"Those two people...is that why you left?"

"I-I was unsure if it might happen. Butー"

"It did happen," Tsunade finished for her.

Izumi sniffed and said, "Father had one of his crazy visions and then he said it was going to happen. I helped Kakashi with some things like setting up the teams of the new genin for the Third Hokage at his house. The following morning, when I came back home, my parents were arguing. It was so sudden that I didn't know what was going on. Next thing I knew, I was forced to leave with mom."

"And you blamed Kakashi for this?" Tsunade asked. Izumi gave her a shrug, meaning "I don't know" or "Maybe". 'No wonder she's messed up.' She stared at her goddaughter wiping her salty tears with the sleeve of her shirt. "Why are you crying?"

"I-I don't k-know..."

The blonde sighed and said to the redhead, "Izumi, go back home. Take a break for now. I'll come visit after your mom writes back."

Izumi nodded and walked away. She shut the door behind her not-so-gently but not-so-hard either. When she got out of the Hokage's building, the sun's light hit her face. This made it easier to dry her tears.

Why of all times did she have to weep? Yes, she cries many times before, but it only happened when she was inside the house. Izumi never cried when she is outside...in the open. In public. With people around her.

Of course, she finally told someone in this village her secret. Izumi didn't think that she can find someone to trust. The redhead had a list of people she knew in her head and wonder who she should tell. Izumi suggested that Yamato is eligible to know. Also, maybe Kurenai. Only if Rin was still alive...she wouldn't have a problem with this entire thing.

Izumi finally reached her apartment building. Just as she was about to go, she heard her name being called. The red-haired woman turned around to find a blonde male with two people following him. One was female with pink hair and the other had black hair and pale skin.

"Izumi! It's been a while!" Naruto yelled while waving at her. He ran to catch up to Izumi with his teammates tailing right behind him.

"Naruto..." just seeing this boy made her smile. "Are you on the way to see Kakashi?"

"Uh, yeah. You know Kakashi-sensei?" the Fourth Hokage's son tilted his head in question.

"Yes, we've known each other since we were four years old," Izumi placed a hand on her neck. "I also know your Captain Yamato since I cooperated with him many times on missions."

The pink-haired kunoichi spoke up, "I never seen you around yet you know sensei and Yamato."

"My name is Izumi Takahashi. I left this village twelve years ago, so of course you wouldn't know much about me."

"E-excuse me..." another voice said. The three turned to see Sai staring at the redhead. "You don't happen to be THE Izumi Takahashi? The only daughter of Yuuto and Mizuki Takahashi?"

Wow, this boy knows enough about her, except about the only child part. She decided to let that slide for now. "That's me."

The rosette Sakura blinked at Izumi. "Wait, you're Yuuto Takahashi's daughter? I didn't know that man had any children at all."

"Actually, I moved back to the Hidden Sand twelve years ago with my mother," Izumi chuckled lightly. "We left my father here. I'm not surprised that the new generation thought he was single with no kids."

"Hey, Sakura! Guess what?" Naruto linked his arm with the adult and said, "She's Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari's cousin!"

"Wow! Really?" Sakura exclaimed, her emerald eyes wide.

"Haha..." Apparently, this pinkette knows Izumi's cousins too. "That's right. My mother is the twin of the Sand Siblings' mom. That makes us cousins."

"That's great!" Sakura grinned at the woman.

"Um..." the boy with pale skin spoke up again.

"What is it, Sai?" the pink-haired teenager turned around and listened to what her new teammate has to say.

"Well, I know you want to socialize with Izumi-san more, but weren't we on our way to see Kakashi?" Everyone else just stared at the boy said for the second time. Sai sort of shrunk a little for speaking up.

Then Naruto grinned, "Don't worry! Kakashi-sensei can wait because he's always the one who keeps us waiting."

Izumi sweat-dropped. So, he's still doing that annoying habit of making people irritated by coming late. "Actually, your friend is right. You should really get going."

The blonde teen turned to face the redhead. "What, you don't want to see me anymore?"

"H-Huh? No, that's not what I meant!" Izumi's eyes went big. "I have this feeling that he wants to tell you something."

Sakura asked, "How about tagging along, Izumi-san? We'd like to get to know you more on the way."

Izumi hesitated. If she goes with them, then Tsunade will wonder where she is. On the other hand, she wants to chat more with Kakashi's team. Then she beamed, "Alright, I'll come with you."

"Yeah! Okay, let's go!" The nine-tailed fox pointed a finger to the direction that leads to the hospital. Everybody else followed him as they chattered.

"So," Izumi said, "since you guys want to know more of me, let's play twenty questions. Also, I'll try to answer honestly as I can."

Naruto grabbed her arm. "Let me ask the first question!"

"Sure, say it."

"What is your favorite food?"

"That's easy. I like any kind of food, as long as there are no mushrooms involved," Izumi wrinkled her nose in disgust at the word 'mushrooms'. "My favorite food is pork cutlet with curry. Actually, I like dishes that have curry with it. I love ramen, too." She nodded happily towards Naruto.

Sakura then asked, "Then what kind of food do you detest?"

The redhead placed a hand under her chin and thought for a moment. "Hmm... It's difficult to dislike food. As I mentioned, though, I hate anything with mushrooms." After answering that question, her emerald eyes flickered to Sai, the new member of Team Kakashi. "Is there anything you want to ask, Sai?"

"Um..." the pale-skinned boy wondered away to think of something to ask the red-haired woman. "Just out of curiosity...why did you leave the Hidden Leaf twelve years ago?"

"Oh, that," her mouth pressed into a thin line. Maybe she should tell them, but she barely knows the teenagers. If they're part of Kakashi's team, maybe she really should fill them in with her story. "Promise not to tell anyone?" she muttered to the three. Naruto, Sakura, and Sai nodded slowly and waited for her response.

"I'm not really sure, though," Izumi sighed. "The basic answer for that is...there was this guy. He was the same age as I am. My used-to-be boyfriend. Something happened and my parents broke into an overnight argument. I was then supposed to leave with my mom. The end."

"You used to have a BOYFRIEND?" Naruto's jaw dropped a little. "Who is he? What's his name?"

"That question...you will soon find out on your own. Your answer is going to pop in your head later on," Izumi winked at the three. Then, she said, "Since Naruto asked that question, it's Sakura's turn again."

"WHAT?" Naruto's eye twitched. "I didn't ask you that on purpose!"

"Naruto, you idiot!" Sakura slapped his head upward. "Who the hell cares? You'll get your chance two turns from now!" The son of the Fourth Hokage mumbled something under his breath that Izumi couldn't quite hear. She decided to let that go.

The teenage girl faced the redhead and asked, "Anyway, how did you get so appealing? I bet there were a bunch of guys who would go out with you."

"I...well," Izumi looked up the sky as she thought for an answer. "I'm not really sure why I'm appealing. My mother was beyond beautiful so I guess that why."

"As Sakura said, were there men who lined up to go out with you?" Sai asked.

"Yes, many of them," Izumi rolled her eyes, displeased to remember that in her life. "I find it...vexatious." She shivered at the lined up men. Most of them are stalkers. Some are perverts. Overall, they just think she's the most charming girl ever. "Naruto, it's your turn."

"Huh? Oh, right! So when is your birthday?"

"September 3." The red-haired woman simply replied.

"What are the colors you like or favorite?" the rosette went after the blond.

"Yellow, black, purple, maroon, silver..." Just replying that silver is one of her favorite colors almost made her hold her breath, "and aqua."

"I think I should let Naruto and Sakura do the interview," Sai kindly passed and nodded his head to the jinchuuriki.

"Alright!" Naruto cheered. "What are your hobbies?"

"I have many," Izumi said, "I can tell you some of it. My hobbies: playing the musical instruments I know, eating, reading novels, writing stories and songs..." the redhead used her fingers to count the hobbies she mentioned. "I like to cook. My mother forces me to study even at this age, so I think studying is turning into one of my hobbies. I train too, so I'll never lose concentration as a ninja. I'm sort of a sleeping addict since most of the time I wake up at noon. I enjoy drawing too. I have many paintings and sketches back in the Hidden Sand." This made a certain pale-faced boy interested in her work.

The woman continued to babble on, "I love to sing and dance. I like passing time having fun with children. They're just...adorable, you know? I also like cultivating plants and flowers. I think that's it for now..."

"That's...a lot," Sakura blinked, wondering how she's going to memorize everything Izumi just said. Then, she remembered that it's her turn to ask something. "Since you're born here in the Hidden Leaf, what is your favorite tourist attraction?"

"Oh...actually, I wasn't born here. My birthplace is where my cousins are," Izumi gave her a smile; "My favorite tourist attraction here is definitely the hot springs. I love baths, the water in the hot springs are warm and relaxing."

Naruto placed his peach hands on her shoulder, "So are you a strong ninja?"

"I-I'm not sure about that. Go asked Tsunade to find out," Izumi answered. She never brags about her skills, but, hey they called her a genius. "Just to let you know, I'm a jonin."

"Uh..." Sakura quickly thought of something to ask, "You're really pretty and all, maybe you can answer this easily. What are the three physical features that people usually praise you the most?"

"Heh..." the woman smirked. After getting so many fan boys back then, this question really is a piece of cake. "People mostly compliment my hair, my face, and...my..." she gulped, realizing that the last word sounded a little perverted. "Well, just when maturity hit, they started rambling on and on about my upper body."

"That's disgusting..." Sakura's nose wrinkled, thinking how Izumi dealt with all that.

"Yes, it is."

"Okay! My turn!" Naruto chirped. "Who's your first kiss?"

Izumi's face turned into a light shade of red. She glanced at the blue sky again, one specific man in mind. _Kakashi..._

She gazed at Team Kakashi. The blonde and the pink-head's jaw dropped. The new member of the team just had his face inexpressive. The redhead's head tilted in perplexity. "Is something the matter?"

"Y-you..." Sakura couldn't say the rest.

"Your first kiss was Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto bawled, pointing an I-can't-believe-it finger at the woman.

Oh.

Did she just...?

"Uh...did I just say that out loud?" Izumi blushed, embarrassed that she blurted something she was thinking of.

"So..." Naruto elbowed her on the rib, gluing on a devilish smirk on his whisker-marked face. "That means Kakashi-sensei is your boyfriend?"

"Who would've thought that those two would be a couple?" Sakura joined in, doing the same thing what Naruto was doing.

An angry vein popped out of Izumi's forehead. "Actually, that couple is over now," she said through clenched teeth.

"I-Izumi, just calm down," Sakura waved her two hands as she spoke. A provoked Izumi is something people wouldn't want to see. The pink head can sense the woman's temper rising as they joked about.

The red-haired adult loosened up and turned to face them. "Let's continue the interview, shall we?" Izumi let out an innocent yet irritated grin at the three.

Team Kakashi nodded their heads and continued to pace their way to the hospital.

"Who were your three closest friends before you moved away?" Sakura questioned.

"You probably wouldn't know them because they passed away at a young age around thirteen years old," Izumi replied, "Well, you know one and it's Yamato. The other two are Uchiha Obito and Rin."

"Hey, Izumi, do you have any brother and sister?" Naruto interrupted what his female teammate was going to say.

"Actually," Sai said, "She is the only child of those two strong shinobi who were set up in an arranged marriage."

"Uh...I'm not really the only child," Izumi corrected him. Sai cocked his head, mystified. The redhead explained, "I have two older siblings that are twins. So I have one brother and a sister. Not a lot of people knew about it, so don't worry about the wrong information you had, Sai."

"Alright, my turn!" Sakura said after a few seconds of silence. "Why did you used to like Kakashi-sensei?"

"H-hey...I thought you're not going to get back to that topic again," Izumi frowned at the pink head kunoichi.

"Come on! We all want to know! Besides, I didn't think that our old sensei would never get a girl of his own!" Naruto jumped in, excited to hear get response. The three teenagers nodded, waiting for why Izumi has to say.

"How about asking Kakashi that?" she retorted.

"NOOOO!" Naruto and Sakura complained.

"B-but...Izumi, I can tell that sensei wouldn't tell us anyway!" Sakura argued.

"Ask someone else then."

"What? Who else would know about you two?" said Naruto.

"A brunette...A man..."

"A male brunette? There are a lot of men that have brown hair!" Naruto debated.

"Figure it out," Izumi awkwardly answered as she strolled ahead of them.

"Izumi! Tell us!" Sakura went after her with her two comrades following her.

* * *

**Well…what do you think? I think it really sucked (for me). I could've done better. Remember, I take any criticism…BUT BE NICE ABOUT IT. What I meant was, if you think my story sucks and needs to improve, just say it like you're being nice and all. I don't need any freakin' flame or a your-story-sucks-like-hell review. **

**Now that you mention it, REVIEW PLEASE! :D**


	8. Chapter 8

"Okay, I'm getting the heck out of here," Izumi announced to Team Kakashi in the hospital room. Everyone turned their attention back to her.

Naruto was the first to say something, "Why can't you stay longer here?"

Izumi stared at the blond. She can already tell that he likes her already. The redhead used to make a lot of new friends in a flash when she was young. Well, only when she was in Konoha, that is.

"I have some things to do. Besides, the Hokage wants to have a talk with me as soon as possible," she explained to Naruto, actually, to everyone. Kakashi, sitting up on his rather uncomfortable bed, just gazed at her, curious about what kind of talk with Tsunade-sama will be like.

Sakura, the pink-haired kunoichi with a temper like her master, also wanted Izumi to stay. Even though she doesn't know everything about her, Sakura wanted to know anything that she forgot to ask in the "Twenty Questions". Another thing, the pink head is still having the urge to ask Izumi about her past with her former sensei, Kakashi.

Sai, the newest member of Team Kakashi with a pale face, thinks that Izumi is am interesting person. Ever since she mentioned that she has a gallery of art paintings and sketches back in Suna, he wanted to ask her of what she scribbles on the blank canvas. Sai also found out that Izumi isn't the only child. The redhead told him not to worry about his incorrect information about her.

Kakashi said, "Izumi, come here for a second. I need to ask you something."

Izumi raised an eyebrow, wondering what is up with him. "Uh...sure?" she strolled towards his bed. "What do you want?"

He can tell that she is a little annoyed about him asking her something. Kakashi covered his mouth with his orange book and whispered low enough for the three teenagers couldn't hear what they're saying. Izumi tilted her head so she can hear what he is mumbling about. As soon as the words came out she wondered out loud, "Why in the world would you do that?"

Kakashi whispered more words. The redhead puffed her cheeks, not buying his explanation. "Of all times, you're asking me this..." The silver-haired jonin stared at her with pleading yet cool eyes. She sighed, "Fine..."

"Thanks..." Kakashi nodded and watched Izumi leave the room. His teammates gave him a confused expression.

"Kakashi-sensei, what was that about?" Sakura asked before Naruto can say something.

"Oh, it's nothing..." Kakashi's visible eye scanned his book and turned the page.

"Oh, really? Why did Izumi looked pissed off?" Naruto smirked. Now that they knew that Kakashi and Izumi was once a couple, the blond has been thinking of teasing the both of them about it.

"The reason why I asked her the question was a little unreasonable."

"What did you ask her?" Sakura questioned.

"It's none of your business."

"Did you ask her out on a date?" Naruto chuckled.

Kakashi closed his book, his eyes boring on his sensei's son. "Why would I ask her on a date? She has no interest on being with me."

"Yeah, right," both Sakura and Naruto rolled their eyes, not believing it.

"Why did you think that I'm asking her out?"

"Well..." Sakura said, "We found out that the two of you were once a couple." She talked with a matter-of-fact tone.

Naruto stepped in, "Yeah! Izumi blurt it out loud without even knowing it! We asked her who was her first kiss and BAM! She said it."

Kakashi knitted his eyebrows together in confusion. "Why did you ask her that?"

"We were doing the Twenty Questions to get to know her more," Sai replied this time.

"Then, you asked her who her first kiss was and she said it out loud?"

All three of them nodded their heads. Kakashi sighed with a little irritation. Great, so his team knows. He didn't blame his redheaded ex-girlfriend. Maybe she just spaced out and happened to say it out loud.

"So, sensei, if you ever need help on impressing Izumi, you can ask me!" Sakura said with a big grin on her face.

Kakashi sighed again. Why do they want to help him? Izumi doesn't want him back, so what's the point in doing so? Plus, he needed to focus on the main problems such as the Akatsuki.

"Or you can ask me!" Naruto offered.

Everyone stared at Naruto with their eyebrow raised. Since when is Naruto interested in helping people with love? "Naruto, it's better if Kakashi-sensei can just ask me," Sakura sweat dropped.

"What's wrong with me helping sensei?" the Nine-Tailed jinchuuriki asked his pink haired teammate.

Sakura rolled her green eyes, "Well, you're not really the type to give out love advice to others. You're just... Inexperienced, you know?" Naruto muttered something and crossed his arms across his chest.

"Okay, that's enough. Let's get back on topic," Kakashi gave out a lazy sigh and continued on reading his book. Why would those teenagers bother helping him?

Izumi hummed to herself as she put away the remaining boxes of her belongings in the attic. She had just recently discovered the hidden room just yesterday. She thinks it's a great place to store her belongings that she won't be needed for a while. Surprisingly, the redhead transformed into a good mood from being annoyed. Izumi doesn't know why, but she's feeling that joy inside her.

Izumi put down the boxes by the time she got to the attic. The room looked really clean, unlike some attics she thought it would look like a mess. The twenty-nine year old woman scanned the attic. She carried the boxes further in the room. She opened one that was on the top of the pile, wondering what she pack in that particular box.

Inside the package were photo albums. Some pictures are placed in frames. Izumi grinned and opened the cover of one of the photo albums. Most of the photos are taken with her friends and family...oh, and Kakashi, too. They all looked so young. There was her with Rin and Obito. Oh, there are her teammates, along with her sensei. She finds a picture with her parents and siblings. They brought so many memories, and Izumi is glad that she moved to Konoha with them.

"I'm hungry," she interrupted the silence around her and stood up. The redhead exited the attic and then closed the door behind her. She skipped to her kitchen to get some snacks. "Oh...it's lunch..." Izumi's eyes focused on her analog clock before getting some food ready to cook. "What should I make today?"

Izumi walked over to her refrigerator, taking a peek at the food she can cook with for her meal. 'Let's see...' she mentally said. 'I have some eggs, milk, tomatoes, and leftover rice from last night.' Izumi continued to list the ingredients that are stored in her big rectangle food box. With the sight of eggs, a certain meal crossed her mind: omelet rice. She dreamily sighed at the image of the dish before getting started.

Izumi got her rice ready by heating it in the microwave she recently purchased. The redhead turned to the stove and placed a large skillet and sauté in a pan. She waited for that to soften. Adding steamed rice and stir-fry together, Izumi sprinkled some salt and pepper. She added ketchup right after stopping the heat. Mixing them, Izumi put the seasoned rice aside. She heats one teaspoon of vegetable oil in the skillet. She beats two eggs in a small bowl and poured the egg in the skillet. The woman swiftly spread the egg to make a round omelet. She places one-fourth of the seasoned rice in the middle of the omelet. She folded the top and bottom sides of the omelet over the rice. Izumi covers the frying pan with a plate a carefully turn them over to place the omelet rice on the plate.

Izumi stretched her arms as she put away her utensils in the sink to wash them later. She hadn't realized that there were two omelet rides in two different plates. "...Two? I thought I only made one..." Shaking her head right to left, she placed the two plates on the table. "Who should I give the other one to?" Izumi puts a hand under her chin to think. "Ehh... I'll give that one to...no, never mind..."

As she thought about it, she began to use her spoon to eat some bits of the omelet rice. Just as she was going to get another scoop of her meal, there were three knocks on her door. Frowning, Izumi stood up from get chair and headed to the entrance of her apartment. She took a deep breath, hoping it isn't someone that can irritate her. Opening the door, she said, "WhatーOh, Ten... I mean, Yamato. What's up?" The redhead huffed as she saw the wood-type user.

"Nothing," Yamato shrugged. "Just wondering what you were doing."

"Well, I'm eating lunch," Izumi placed a hand on her hip as she leaned on her door. Then, something clicked in her mind. "Oh, hey, I have extra omelet rice. Do you want it?"

"Omelet rice?"

She nodded, "Yeah, omelet rice. I cooked it...and I didn't realize that I made two servings. Well...since you're here, do you want the other one?"

"Is it oily?"

"No," Izumi rolled her emerald eyes. Why would she want Yamato to take it if it was oily? She's not a bad cook. Plus, she knew real well that her friend dislikes food like that. "So, want it?"

"I guess..." Yamato grinned and entered her apartment. Closing the door behind him, the brunette headed to the kitchen. The scent of the redhead's omelet rice made him think that the dish must be delicious. "Hmm..."

"What is it?" Izumi followed right behind the man. She leaned in to see Yamato gawking at her recently made dish. "You don't like it? You didn't even get to try it?"

"No, I wasn't thinking that. I'd like to try the omelet..."

"Great, let me put this in a container," Izumi just shrugged as his five-second strange behavior. She grabbed a roll of aluminum foil and came back in front of the omelet. The redhead wrapped the plate with the foil she just took from her pantry. Yamato stared at the plate with his eyebrows raised.

"You said you'd put it in a container," he protested.

"It's still food if you unwrap it. Who cares?" She holds onto the plate and nudged it to the wood-type user's hands. "There, happy meal."

"Thank you," Yamato chuckled and said, "You know, I thought that I'd eat this with you."

"Well, you're busy now, right? I heard the Kakashi is going to train Naruto tomorrow. There's got to be preparations made," Izumi beamed happily at the brunette.

"Sure..." Then, something popped in Yamato's mind. He laughed in his head at the thought. He gave her an innocent smile before waving at the redhead. "Well, I got to go." Izumi nodded at him and led him to the front door.

"See you." She waved before shutting door in front of his face. She knew that brunette is up to something. Izumi saw it in his eyes, but decided to let that go. The redhead skipped back to the kitchen to finish her omelet rice.

**OMG I took forever to write this. I think it's because there's so many homework and I have to keep up my freakin' grades. This chapter is really short (I just realized that). Remember, I need nice criticism. There's this one chapter I need to fix, so I'll edit that as soon as possible. See ya. **


	9. Chapter 9

**I Don't Own Naruto~ (sobs).**

* * *

Izumi craned her neck to see if that brunette companion of hers is leaving the hospital. It's been what...? Yamato sure is taking his precious time in Kakashi's hospital room for over an hour. The redhead sighed, leaning too far back on the tree nearby until she plopped herself on the grass. She hummed a random song that didn't even make any sense, and Izumi would check the hospital to see if he left the building.

She looked up to observe the the skies—Oh, right. Izumi's under a massive tree. She didn't want to move just to take a fleeting look at the sky. Izumi began swaying left to right as she waited patiently—not exactly patient, since she's on the verge of getting pissed off about Yamato. Izumi yawned, and so did a cat that came out of nowhere. It's only past noon, yet the redhead is getting tired by waiting.

It would be a minor dilemma if she just barged in through Kakashi's door and bellow at the Wood-style user. She might be silenced by a nurse who will be checking in on the patients. Hmm... That sounded like a better plan than sitting on her bottom for such a long time. Izumi checked to see if that individual is departing out of the hospice.

Sure enough, Yamato marched out. The redhead could see a small grin plastered on his face, and she frowned. 'Damn it,' she thought, 'So he did give it to him!' Izumi got to her feet and decided to sneak up on him from behind. Before that, though, she was thinking on what she should say to the younger ninja.

"Boo."

"Agh!" Izumi jumped and swiftly turned. The only thing there was Yamato and his ghoul-like eyes used for scaring the hell out of people. "You! How did you...? No! I was supposed to sneak up on you first!" she screeched.

Yamato tilted his head and smirked. "Why are you planning such a thing? Did I do something wrong?"

The redhead's eyebrow twitched in displeasure. She held his shoulders and shook him back and forth. "Hell yeah, you did! You gave that guy the omelet, didn't you?"

Yamato dropped a sweat. How did she find out effortlessly? "Oh, come on, senpai. Why would I—" She glowered precariously, "Y-Yes, I did. Sorry."

"Damn it! He probably hates it!" Izumi pulled on her crimson hair in aggravation. "He's going to think that I put poison on it, or maybe he'll hate me even more. And...and... What did he say when you gave it to him?"

The wood-type user heaved a sigh and shrugged, "I lied to him, saying that you were apprehensive about him and such—"

"You're an idiot."

"Excuse me?"

"Tenzou, you're a bigger idiot than I thought!" Izumi grabbed his neck and throttled him with an arm, "How can you say that to him?" She bonked his head, "I'm not even thinking of being worried about him and..." Bonk. "You go and ruin it!" Bonk.

"H-Hey! Let go, senpai!" Yamato had forgotten how strong she was. "Can you please let me go?"

Izumi gave him one last bonk and released him. "Go back there and tell him the truth." She placed her hands on her hips and glared again.

Yamato reassured himself down after being free from her physically powerful grasp. "Kakashi-senpai won't care a bit. Just let him eat your omelet. It'll be fine." Then, an idea struck him. "I know...visit him instead!"

"No!"

"If you like, I'll come along." Izumi bonked him, and this time for sure will be the last time for the day.

* * *

"Hmm? The omelet? The nurse said I wasn't allowed to consume it. I'm supposed to be on liquid diet for a while."

Yamato didn't know what to say to that, and stared at the woman next to him. He flinched when he could feel an iniquity atmosphere surrounding her. The brunette flinched even more when she punched him on the arm. Hard. "So what you're saying is... I cooked it for nothing?" Izumi exclaimed and crossed her arms across her chest.

Kakashi's eyes were glued on his book. Despite the fact that he read it so many times, what will happen next in the story made him keen to read more. "I wouldn't say it was for nothing. I appreciate you for cooking for me. It was very considerate of you—"

"That omelet wasn't intended to be for you!" she interrupted, glaring at him. Pointing at the brunette standing beside her, she said, "It's this dude! He lied to you about me being worried and gave the omelet to you."

"Is that so...?"

"Put that book down! I'm talking to you!"

Kakashi listened, and lowered the book. "If it makes you feel any better, I'll treat you at a restaurant when I leave the hospital." They started a staring contest.

Izumi blinked, ending the staring match. "Liar! Where is the nurse? I want the omelet back!"

"Why is the omelet so important to you?" asked the patient, vaguely baffled. "It's just an omelet. Besides, we're in a hospital, filled with sick patients. The food is likely to be contaminated from the germs."

She refrained from hitting him on the head. Instead, Izumi stomped her way out of the room, exasperated leaving Kakashi, still befuddled. "What's wrong with her?"

"I don't know, senpai."

* * *

I come back after a year and this is what I give you -_-" I'm sooo sorry. I forgot about this story and I will make it up by updating every so often from now on. See, I was thinking that my style of writing wasn't really any good so I stopped for a while to improve. I guess I never did D: LOL not to mention I was trying to improve by writing another fanfiction for Fire Emblem. Idk about publishing about that one, but whatever. Also, are there any Fortune Arterial fanfictions in this site? I can't seem to find it. ): I mean I wrote a Fanfic about it too (like a series now), but ehh.


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